Can we get a home loan while on maternity leave?

Any general questions you might have in regards to loans and finance.
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Otto Dargan
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Re: Can we get a home loan while on maternity leave?

Post by Otto Dargan »

Hello Taika. Welcome to the forums and congratulations on the baby!

Maternity leave home loans are offered by a few lenders and only a few among them accept borrowers on unpaid leave. The one thing lenders want to work out is whether or not you can afford the home loan without any significant hardship as part of their responsible lending guidelines.

To verify you can afford the home loan repayments, lenders require:
  • Payslips from the last 3 months prior to starting your parental leave.
  • A maternity leave letter which explicitly notes your return to work income and date.
  • Evidence of savings via bank statements, equity or your partner’s income to prove that you can afford the loan while on unpaid leave.
To find out how much surplus funds you require, you can use our ‘maternity leave living expenses calculator’.

The key is to apply with the right lender.

Give us a call on 1300 889 743 or fill in our free assessment form to find out if you qualify for a home loan while on maternity leave.

Cheers,
Otto Dargan
Mortgage Broker
P | 1300 889 743
Home Loan Experts

User avatar
Otto Dargan
Mortgage Specialist
Posts: 7730
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:55 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia
Contact:

Re: Can we get a home loan while on maternity leave?

Post by Otto Dargan »

Hi Taika,

Yes, both government benefits such as Centrelink income and gifts from parents can be used to evidence that you can afford the loan while on parental leave. Lenders will require evidence of the gift amount being in your account and statements for the centre link income.

Cheers,
Otto Dargan
Mortgage Broker
P | 1300 889 743
Home Loan Experts

User avatar
Otto Dargan
Mortgage Specialist
Posts: 7730
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:55 pm
Location: Sydney, Australia
Contact:

Re: Can we get a home loan while on maternity leave?

Post by Otto Dargan »

Hi Taika,

Your tentatively calculated maximum borrowing power is between $540,000-$560,000. You can also use our borrowing power calculator.

We’ll need to do a full assessment for an accurate figure. A simple way to quickly improve your borrowing power is to cancel a few credit cards as lenders will use the full credit limit in their assessment instead of using the credit balance.

You can learn more about improving your borrowing power here.

Only recently, lenders were allowed to decide their own assessment rates which you can learn more about here. Basically, eligible borrowers can now borrow up to roughly 15% more than they could before.

Pre-approvals are typically valid for 3 to 6 months. They are not always reliable, so it’s best to get a mortgage broker to do a full assessment.

Give us a call on 1300 889 743 or fill in our free assessment form to find out which lenders will allow you to borrow the amount you need.

Cheers,
Otto Dargan
Mortgage Broker
P | 1300 889 743
Home Loan Experts

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