Questions we are asked.

We help you understand your options, compare loans from the lenders on our panel, and manage the application from the first conversation through to settlement. When we provide credit assistance for a home loan, the law requires us to act in your best interests (the Best Interests Duty), so we explain the trade-offs in plain English and you decide with the full picture in front of you.

How we work

Any of our three brokers: Eldo Jacob, Sumit Batra or Gautam Seth. Enquiries come to the Loanweb team, who match you with the right broker. If you send your enquiry from Sumit's or Gautam's page, it goes straight to them.

Meet the team

Only if you want to. We work with clients across Australia by phone, email or Microsoft Teams, and we are happy to meet at our offices in Geelong, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, or at your home or work.

Book a call

Yes. We work with clients in every state and territory. Offices in Geelong, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. Some lenders, schemes and stamp duty rules vary by state, and we check what applies where you are buying.

Yes, and it helps to talk early. We look at your loan, your budget and the options that may be open to you, and we act under our Best Interests Duty. If you are already in financial difficulty, contact your lender about hardship too; the National Debt Helpline is on 1800 007 007.

Loanweb's brokers are credit representatives of Buyers Choice Licencing Pty Ltd (Australian Credit Licence 509484), part of the Money Quest Group aggregation network. An aggregator gives brokers access to a panel of lenders and the systems to lodge applications. Which lender we recommend comes from your situation and needs.

For most home loans, no. The lender pays us a commission when your loan settles, and often a smaller ongoing commission while it runs. A fee may apply for loans through a trust, commercial lending or more complex transactions. If a fee applies to you, we tell you the amount in writing before you go ahead, and our credit guide sets out how we are paid.

Read our credit guide

Beyond the deposit, the usual costs are stamp duty (unless a concession applies), government registration fees, conveyancing or legal fees, building and pest inspections, any loan application or valuation fees, and lenders mortgage insurance if it applies. We list the costs that apply to your purchase before you commit.

A comparison rate combines a loan's interest rate with most of its fees and charges into a single percentage, so the cost of different loans is easier to compare. Lenders must show it next to any advertised interest rate. It is worked out on a standard example loan, so it may not reflect the cost of your loan, and it leaves out some costs, such as government charges and break costs.

Try the calculators

It can. Leaving a loan may involve a discharge fee, break costs if you are on a fixed rate, and government registration fees, and some lenders charge an application or valuation fee on the new loan. We add up the cost of switching against the difference a new loan would make, so you can see whether refinancing adds up before you commit.

Refinancing, explained

A conversation, not an application. We talk about what you are trying to do, your income and commitments, and what matters to you in a loan. You leave knowing the next steps and what we would need from you, and there is no obligation to go ahead.

Book a call

Pre-approval is a lender's conditional indication of how much it may lend you, based on a first look at your situation. It helps you set a budget and shows agents you are ready to buy. It is not a final approval: the lender still assesses the property and confirms your details before the loan is formally approved, and most pre-approvals expire after a few months.

It depends on the lender, the property and how soon the documents come together, and lender turnaround times change from week to week. We tell you where your application is at each stage and what, if anything, is holding it up. A lender's timing is outside our control, so we plan around it rather than promise it.

A conversation does not. A credit enquiry is recorded when an application is lodged with a lender, so we narrow the options first and discuss it with you before anything is lodged.

We are here when you need us. When your circumstances change, a fixed rate ends or you plan the next purchase, we can review the options with you again.

Usually photo ID, recent payslips (or tax returns and financial statements if you are self-employed), statements for your savings and any debts, and details of the property once you have found one. Every lender asks for slightly different things, so we give you a list built for your situation rather than a generic checklist.

Most lenders ask for two years of personal and business tax returns and financial statements, and your latest business activity statements. Some accept alternative documents, such as business account statements or a letter from your accountant, usually with different pricing and a larger deposit. We check what you have before choosing which lenders to approach.

Self-employed home loans

Lenders, and brokers acting for them, must verify the identity of every borrower under anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. We ask for photo ID and verify it in person, by video or electronically, and we handle it as our privacy policy describes.

Our privacy policy

It depends on the lender, the property and your situation. A larger deposit usually opens up more loan options and can avoid lenders mortgage insurance. Some buyers can purchase with a smaller deposit through a government scheme or with a family guarantor, subject to eligibility and lender criteria. We show you what applies to you.

First home buyers

The Australian Government's home guarantee schemes, run by Housing Australia, can allow eligible buyers to purchase with a smaller deposit without paying lenders mortgage insurance. Victoria, Queensland and South Australia each offer their own first home owner grants or stamp duty concessions. Each has eligibility rules and price caps that change from time to time, so we check the current rules against your situation.

First home buyers

Lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) protects the lender, not you, if a loan is not repaid and the property sells for less than is owed. Lenders usually charge it when you borrow a high share of the property's value. It is usually added to the loan or paid upfront, and some government schemes, and some lenders for certain professions, can reduce or remove it, subject to eligibility.

Often, yes. A guarantor, usually a parent, offers equity in their own property as extra security for part of your loan. It can mean buying with a smaller deposit or without lenders mortgage insurance, but it carries real risk for the guarantor: if you cannot repay, they may have to. Each lender sets its own rules, and every guarantor should get their own legal advice before signing.

Often, yes. Many lenders accept two or more borrowers on one loan, and each borrower is usually responsible for the whole debt, not just their share. We explain how lenders assess a shared purchase, and we suggest a legal agreement between the owners before you buy.

Often, yes. Many lenders on our panel lend to family trusts and companies for investment property, usually with personal guarantees from the directors or trustees. Which structure suits you is a question for your accountant, because it affects tax, land tax and how future purchases are assessed. Once the structure is decided, we set out the lending options that fit it.

Investment property loans

Often, yes. Many lenders will lend against the equity in a property you own, within their limits, to fund the deposit and costs on another. How that loan is set up, and whether the properties are cross-secured, affects what happens when you later sell or refinance, so we set out the structure options first.

Investment property loans

Each has trade-offs. A fixed rate keeps your repayments the same for a set period, which helps with budgeting, but it usually limits extra repayments and can carry break costs if you leave early. A variable rate moves with the market and tends to come with more flexibility, such as an offset account or redraw. Many people split their loan between the two. We walk you through how each would work for your situation.

A self-managed super fund can borrow to buy property through a limited recourse borrowing arrangement, which has strict rules about how the property is held and used. Fewer lenders offer these loans than standard home loans. Whether your fund should borrow is a decision for you, your accountant and a licensed adviser; we do not give that advice. Once it is in place, we help with the lending side.

SMSF loans

Often, yes. Lenders assess business income differently from wages. Most ask for two years of tax returns and financial statements, while some consider a shorter trading history or accept alternative documents, usually with different pricing and a larger deposit. We work out which lenders fit your records before anything is lodged.

The business's financials and cash flow, the security offered, the borrowing entity and the people behind it, and the purpose of the loan. Each lender on our panel weighs these differently, and we prepare the application for the lenders whose criteria fit.

Commercial loans

Often you can, and many business loans are secured this way. It puts your home at risk if the business cannot repay, so we explain exactly what is being secured before you decide, and we recommend you get your own legal advice before signing.

Business loans

Yes. Lenders look at the business's trading history, your experience in the industry, the sale contract and your own contribution. Some lenders assess franchise systems they have accredited against the franchisor's history. We check which lenders on our panel fit the purchase and prepare the application alongside your accountant and solicitor.

Buying a business

Often, yes. Lenders set limits on the age and condition of the asset at the end of the loan term, and those limits vary across our panel. We tell you which lenders fit the asset you have in mind, subject to their criteria.

Car and asset finance

A balloon is a lump sum left owing at the end of the loan term. It reduces the regular repayments but increases the total interest paid, and it has to be paid, refinanced or covered by selling the asset when the term ends. We show the total cost with and without one before you decide.

Car loans

With a chattel mortgage the business owns the asset from the start and the lender holds a mortgage over it. With a lease the financier owns the asset and the business pays to use it. The GST, tax and accounting treatment differ, so we explain the structures and your accountant advises on which suits the business.

Equipment finance