What Not to Do When Hunting for Your First Property

Start with What You Can Borrow, Not What You Want to Buy

Your borrowing power sets the boundary for your property search. Walk into open homes without knowing this number and you'll waste weekends looking at places you can't afford or miss opportunities in your actual price range. As a concreter, your income structure matters. If you're on ABN and taking deductions for tools, vehicles, or consumables, lenders use your taxable income after those write-offs. That figure can look very different to what you think you earn. Get pre-approval before you start attending inspections so you know exactly where the ceiling sits.

Consider a concreter turning over $95,000 after legitimate business deductions. That taxable figure determines serviceability, not the gross revenue before expenses. With a 10% deposit and no other debt, borrowing capacity might sit around $450,000 to $480,000 depending on the lender's assessment. Add a ute loan or outstanding credit card balance and that figure drops. Knowing this before you tour properties means you can focus on what's within reach instead of falling for a place you'll never settle on.

Stamp Duty Isn't Optional

You need cash for stamp duty unless you qualify for a full exemption, and most concreters buying established homes in higher-priced markets won't. In New South Wales, the full stamp duty exemption applies to properties valued up to $800,000. In Victoria, that threshold is $600,000 for a full exemption. If you're looking outside those ranges, factor in the bill. On a $650,000 purchase in Victoria, the concessional duty still costs a few thousand. On a $900,000 home in Sydney, you're outside the exemption zone entirely and paying close to $34,000. That money has to come from genuine savings or a gift that meets lender requirements. Don't ignore it and hope the conveyancer sorts it out at settlement.

If you're buying in Queensland, the first home concession reduces duty but doesn't eliminate it on established homes. The $17,350 maximum deduction applies to properties up to $709,999, then phases out. You'll still owe duty on top of that reduction. In South Australia, stamp duty relief is only available on new homes and vacant land. If you're buying an established house, you pay full duty no matter your circumstances. Check your state's rules before you calculate how much deposit you need because the settlement costs vary wildly depending on where you buy.

Don't Assume You Need 20% to Get Started

Lenders will approve loans with a 5% or 10% deposit if you meet their criteria, and several schemes make that possible without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance. The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme allows eligible first home buyers to purchase with a 5% deposit and no LMI. Housing Australia guarantees the gap between your deposit and 20% of the property value. There are no income caps and no annual place limits. You apply through a participating lender, not directly through Housing Australia. Price caps apply depending on the state and whether the property is in a capital city, regional centre, or other area. In New South Wales, the cap is $1,500,000 for Sydney and regional centres. In Victoria, it's $950,000. In Queensland, $1,000,000.

If you've got a 10% deposit saved, some lenders offer reduced LMI or specific tradie-friendly home loan options that don't penalise self-employed borrowers the way mainstream products do. LMI typically costs between 1% and 3% of the loan amount depending on your deposit size and the lender's risk model. On a $500,000 loan with a 10% deposit, that could mean $8,000 to $12,000 added to your loan balance or paid upfront. Avoiding that clip by accessing a government scheme or a lender with different criteria makes a material difference to what you can afford.

Searching Without Knowing What Grants Apply

First home buyer grants vary by state and by property type. In Queensland, the First Home Owner Grant pays $30,000 for new homes under $750,000. That grant doesn't apply to established properties. If you're searching for established homes in Brisbane without realising this, you're planning your deposit on a figure that doesn't include $30,000 you won't receive. In New South Wales, the $10,000 grant applies only to new builds or substantially renovated homes under the relevant caps. Buying an established terrace in Newcastle means you're not eligible.

In the Northern Territory, the HomeGrown Territory Grant offers $50,000 for new homes with no price cap. That's the highest first home grant in the country, and it applies to contracts signed before 30 September 2027. If you're working in Darwin and weighing up a new build versus an older place, the $50,000 difference changes the equation entirely. In South Australia, the $15,000 grant applies to new homes with no price cap for contracts entered into after 6 June 2024, but there's no grant for established homes. Understand what you qualify for before you shortlist properties or you'll base your budget on the wrong assumptions.

Waiting Until You See the Perfect Property to Talk to a Broker

You can't move quickly without finance sorted. Properties in tighter markets sell within days of listing, sometimes before the first open home. If you're still gathering documents when you find the right place, someone else will make an offer while you're waiting for a lender to assess your application. Get your finance for tradies lined up early. That means pulling together tax returns, BAS statements, and bank statements before you start attending inspections. A broker who understands tradie income structures can tell you which lenders will accept your application and which ones will decline you based on how your deductions are structured.

In our experience, concreters who wait until they've found a property to start the finance process lose out more often than those who prepare early. Lenders take time to assess self-employed applicants. If your paperwork isn't in order or your accountant needs to provide clarification on specific deductions, that delay costs you the property. Pre-approval gives you certainty and speed. It also shows agents and vendors you're serious, which matters when multiple buyers are competing.

Choosing Suburbs Based on What You've Heard, Not What the Numbers Show

Reputation doesn't always match affordability or opportunity. A suburb everyone talks about might be out of reach or overpriced relative to what you get. A less discussed area might offer the same access to work, schools, and transport for $100,000 less. Do your own research. Look at recent sales data, days on market, and price trends over the last 12 months. Check proximity to major roads if you're running a concreting business and need to move between job sites. Look at council rates and strata fees if you're considering a townhouse or unit. Those ongoing costs affect how much you can afford to repay each month.

Don't rely on a single source or a mate's opinion about where to buy. Property markets shift. A suburb that was underpriced two years ago might now be fully valued. An area that's seeing new infrastructure investment might be worth a second look even if it's not on your original list. Use your deposit size, borrowing capacity, and actual needs to guide the search, not hype or outdated advice.

Skipping the Building and Pest Inspection to Save a Few Hundred Dollars

A building inspection costs around $400 to $600 depending on the property type and location. Skipping it to save that amount is a mistake that can cost you tens of thousands. Concreters know what poor formwork or badly laid slabs look like, but you're not necessarily trained to spot structural movement, timber pest damage, or defects in roofing and drainage. A licensed inspector will identify issues the vendor hasn't disclosed and give you leverage to renegotiate or walk away before you're locked in.

If the inspection reveals $15,000 of rectification work on stumps, retaining walls, or rising damp, you can factor that into your offer or pull out of the contract if it's subject to a satisfactory inspection. If you don't get the inspection and discover the problems after settlement, you wear the cost. The same applies to pest inspections. Termite damage isn't always visible during a 15-minute walkthrough, but an inspector with a moisture meter and thermal camera will find it. Spend the money before you sign anything binding.

Ignoring Loan Features That Matter After You Settle

Your loan structure affects how quickly you pay off the property and how much flexibility you have if your income fluctuates. An offset account lets you park your savings in a transaction account linked to your loan, reducing the interest charged on the balance without locking the money away. If you're a concreter with seasonal cash flow or irregular payments from builders, that flexibility matters. A redraw facility lets you pull out extra repayments if you need access to cash, but some lenders charge fees or place restrictions on how much you can withdraw and how often.

Fixed rates lock in certainty but remove flexibility. If you fix your rate and want to pay extra, you'll hit a cap on additional repayments, usually around $10,000 to $30,000 per year depending on the lender. If you break the fixed term early because you sell or refinance, you'll pay break costs. Variable rates give you unlimited extra repayments and full access to offset and redraw, but your rate can move. Splitting your loan between fixed and variable gives you some of both, but not all lenders offer that option without restrictions. Work out what you need before you pick a product, not after you've signed the paperwork.

Focusing Only on the Purchase Price and Ignoring What It Costs to Hold the Property

The purchase price is one part of the equation. What you pay every month to hold the property determines whether you can sustain it long term. Council rates, water rates, strata fees, insurance, and loan repayments add up. On a $600,000 loan at current variable rates, repayments sit around $3,600 to $3,900 per month depending on the rate and loan term. Add $400 per month in rates, insurance, and strata, and you're at over $4,000 per month before maintenance or any other costs. If your income drops during a slow period or a job falls through, that fixed monthly outgoing doesn't change.

Work out what your total monthly holding costs will be and make sure your income can cover it with a buffer. Lenders assess serviceability using a higher interest rate than what you'll actually pay, usually around 3% above the loan rate, but that doesn't mean you should borrow to the maximum they approve. Leave room for income variation, unexpected repairs, and rate rises. If you're stretching to buy at the top of your borrowing capacity, you're one bad month away from financial pressure.

Call one of our team or book an appointment at a time that works for you. We'll help you line up the right finance structure, work out what you can borrow, and make sure you're not missing any grants or concessions that apply to concreters buying their first home.

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