FIELD NOTES
Field notes
Plain-English property literacy. One mechanism a week, every claim traced to a named source.
A new note lands every Saturday morning.
LATEST NOTE
Genuine savings: why lenders care that you saved the deposit, not that you have it
A lender checks more than whether the deposit exists. It checks where the money came from. Here's what "genuine savings" means, why it matters, and how gifts fit in.
Get finance-ready
5 of 16 published
- deposithome loans
Genuine savings: why lenders care that you saved the deposit, not that you have it
A lender checks more than whether the deposit exists. It checks where the money came from. Here's what "genuine savings" means, why it matters, and how gifts fit in.
5 min readRead 
lenders mortgage insurancedepositLenders Mortgage Insurance: the cost you pay for the lender's cover
LMI can sit inside your loan costs, and despite the name the cover belongs to the lender. Here is what it is, when it appears, and how buyers may reduce it.
5 min readRead
home guarantee schemefirst home buyersThe Home Guarantee Scheme: buying with a smaller deposit and skipping LMI
A government guarantee can let eligible buyers purchase with a smaller deposit and avoid Lenders Mortgage Insurance. Here is how it works, and the trade-off.
5 min readRead
home loanscomparison rateComparison rate vs the advertised rate: why the bigger number is the honest one
Every Australian home loan ad shows two rates. The smaller one sells the loan; the larger one gives a fuller view of the cost. Here is how to read both.
4 min readRead
home loansoffset accountOffset vs redraw: two ways to park spare cash against your home loan
Both use your spare money to cut the interest on your loan. Their rules differ on access, fees, and tax if you ever rent the place out.
5 min readRead
Find and assess
0 of 9 published
Notes in this stage land over the coming weeks.
Offer, contract and auction
2 of 12 published
buyingcooling-off periodCooling-off and building & pest: your two ways out after you sign
Signing a contract to buy a home is not always the point of no return. Cooling-off periods and a building & pest inspection are your safety nets if you use them in time.
5 min readRead
conveyancingsettlementConveyancer or solicitor: who handles your settlement, and what it costs
Between an accepted offer and the keys, someone does the legal legwork. Here is what a conveyancer does, when a solicitor is the better call, and what drives the cost.
5 min readRead
Settle and move in
1 of 5 published
Own it well
0 of 10 published
Notes in this stage land over the coming weeks.
Selling
0 of 3 published
Notes in this stage land over the coming weeks.
Renting well
0 of 4 published
Notes in this stage land over the coming weeks.