Personalised Mortgages - Jash Chandra

"𝗪𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗮 20% 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁."

This is an illustrative example based on how 𝗞𝗶𝘄𝗶𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿. A couple, both KiwiSaver members for over three years, used their KiwiSaver withdrawal as their 5% deposit and combined it with a government-underwritten First Home Loan through one of the participating banks. No 20% deposit needed.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀: you need at least three years in KiwiSaver, you can withdraw almost your full balance (minus $1,000), and you intend to live in the home.

If you've been putting off buying because you think the deposit is out of reach, it might be closer than you realise.

Illustrative example. General advice only - eligibility depends on your KiwiSaver provider and individual circumstances.

If your 𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 is ending soon, the 30-60 day mark matters more than the actual rollover date.

Most banks let you lock in a new rate up to 60 days before your term ends. 𝗪𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗮𝘆 and you'll likely be moved onto your bank's standard rate by default, usually the most expensive option on offer.

𝗔 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗭'𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘅 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 as the higher 2023 rates roll off. If yours is one of them, put a reminder in your calendar for 60 days out and get in touch before it, not after.

We compare the market for you so you're not stuck taking whatever your bank offers first.

More listings hit the market every spring. The buyers who move fastest already have one thing sorted: 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗮𝗹.

At the end of July there were over 33,000 properties for sale across NZ, and spring usually adds even more. That's good news if you're house-hunting, but it also means more people looking at the same homes.

If you're pre-approved before the listings pick up, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲. If you're not, you're stuck waiting on paperwork while someone else signs.

Getting pre-approved takes one conversation to start. We'll walk you through exactly what's needed for your situation.

General advice only - every application is assessed on its own facts.

We know. Nobody grows up dreaming of a career in mortgages.

But here we are - genuinely the kind of people who get excited when a client's pre-approval comes through, or when we find a rate that saves someone real money. Mortgages can feel intimidating from the outside. From where we sit, it's just problem-solving with a bit of paperwork attached.

If you've been putting off a chat because you're not sure it's the "right time" or you'll feel silly asking a basic question - there's no such thing as a silly question here.

Got one? Send us a DM, we love nerding out about this stuff 🙂

"𝗜𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗹𝗲?"She asked us that before we found her a better rate.


One of our clients had been with the same bank for six years and figured switching was more trouble than it was worth. We ran the numbers, compared what else was on the market, and moved her to a 𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝘂𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀.
𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁: lower monthly repayments, and money back in her pocket for making the move.


(Illustrative example based on a real client scenario — details changed for privacy.)


If you haven't checked your rate in a while, it might be worth 15 minutes of your time.

𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗞𝗶𝘄𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 right now than almost ever before.

Roughly 𝗮 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲 by March 2026, and borrowers are shopping around at near-record rates - chasing better deals and cashback offers rather than just rolling over with their current bank.

If you haven't checked your rate in the last 12 months, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼. Banks rarely offer their best deal to existing customers automatically - you usually have to ask, or switch.

Takes about 15 minutes to find out where you stand.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: your borrowing power isn't just about deposit anymore.

Since 2024, banks have had 𝗱𝗲𝗯𝘁-𝘁𝗼-𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 (𝗗𝗧𝗜) limits to work within - 6 times your gross income for owner-occupiers, 7 times for investors. Your DTI counts the new mortgage plus your existing debt, but rental income counts in your favour too.

𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀: refinancing (without increasing the loan), new builds, and bridging finance are exempt from DTI restrictions.

Worth doing the maths before you go house-hunting, not after you've found the one.

General advice only - your numbers will differ, so let's run yours properly.

"𝗠𝘆 𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼." That's sometimes where our job starts.

One of our clients - 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 - went to his bank for a home loan and got knocked back. Standard bank criteria wants two full years of tax returns and doesn't always know what to do with income that varies month to month.

𝗪𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗶𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 - not just the tax return line - and matched him with a lender who actually works with self-employed borrowers. Approved.

(Illustrative example based on a real client scenario - details changed for privacy.)

Been told no before? That doesn't mean you're out of options. It might just mean you were talking to the wrong lender.

𝗦𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁. 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁?

First-home buyers made up 27% of purchases in the first quarter of 2026 - well above the usual average. Translation: there's real competition out there, and the buyers who move fastest are the ones who already have pre-approval sorted.

𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴:
1. Your deposit sources documented (savings, KiwiSaver, gifted funds)
2. Your last 3 months of bank statements, tidy and explainable
3. A pre-approval in hand, not just a ""chat"" with the bank

Getting this sorted now means when you find the one, you're ready to act - not scrambling.
General advice only - every situation's different, so let's talk about yours.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸 just did something it hasn't done in three years - it raised the Official Cash Rate, from 2.25% to 2.50%, in July 2026. If you're on a floating rate or coming up for a review, this is the bit that actually matters to you: 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼.

Here's the thing - a rate change doesn't mean panic. It means it's worth checking what you're actually paying versus what's out there. Banks don't always pass on hikes the same way, and fixed-rate borrowers aren't affected until their term's up.

𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱? 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲'𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿.
Rates correct as at July 2026 and subject to change - always confirm current rates before deciding.