First home buyer calculator Australia

Set a safer purchase cap by combining state duty, upfront cash, and repayment pressure before you treat the asking price as your budget.

First-home buyer budget planner

Check the real buying budget before you trust a listing price

Combine deposit, state duty, settlement fees, and repayment stress in one first-home buyer plan.

Purchase summary

NSW first-home duty concession applied.

Deposit amount

$170,000

Loan amount

$680,000

LVR

80.0%

Stamp duty

$8,166

Registration fees

$308

First-home savings

$24,497

Monthly pressure

Use these numbers as planning guardrails, not formal lender approval.

Gross income / month

$13,333

Other commitments

$800

Conservative budget

$3,200

Upper planning budget

$4,000

Listing price is not buying budget

A property can look affordable until duty, registration, and a realistic cash buffer are added to the same scenario.

State rules change the answer

First-home duty relief varies by state, so the same deposit can produce a very different cash requirement across Australia.

Comfort beats lender headline

A safer first purchase usually leaves room for higher rates, rates notices, strata, insurance, and the surprises that arrive after settlement.

Check deposit-only view

Use the buying costs planner if you want a lighter deposit and upfront-cash framing first.

Pressure-test the budget

Move into a stricter pre-approval style cap once the first-home buyer scenario is close to realistic.

Stress-test rate changes

See how the same loan behaves across a wider rate range before you get emotionally attached to a listing.

Buyer path after this planner

Use this order when the first-home scenario is directionally right and you need to tighten the purchase decision.

1. Recheck upfront cash

Break the deposit and cash-needed view out on its own before you lock a property range.

2. Cross-check borrowing range

Make sure serviceability and buying budget are still telling a similar story.

3. Validate base repayments

Move from a safe cap into a cleaner repayment baseline for the shortlist.

4. Stress-test the shortlist

Run the downside scenario before you trust the monthly number.

Related Mortgage tools

Repayment

Monthly, fortnightly, or weekly payment breakdown

Borrowing Power

Estimate how much you can borrow

Buying Costs

Deposit, duty, and upfront cost planning

FAQs

Is this the same as a mortgage pre-approval?

No. This planner is a budgeting tool. It combines purchase costs and repayment stress so you can set a safer cap before formal lender assessment.

Why does the state matter so much for first-home buyers?

Stamp duty, transfer registration, and first-home concessions vary by state and can materially change the upfront cash needed before settlement.

Why can the safer property cap be lower than the listing I entered?

Because the planner checks whether repayments still fit a conservative monthly budget after allowing for other commitments and higher-rate scenarios.