Doctor Home Loans Sydney: How Lenders Assess Medical Income

Who this guide is for

• Hospital doctors: interns, residents, registrars and staff specialists
• Specialists and consultants with public and private income
• GPs, practice associates and practice owners
• Locums and contract doctors
• Overseas-trained doctors and visa holders (eligibility depends on lender policy)
• Doctors with HELP debt buying a first home or upgrading

The real challenge

Standard bank assessment is built around a steady PAYG salary. Doctor income often includes base pay, overtime, penalty rates, on-call allowances and private billings, and it can step up sharply as you move from training to consultant. How each lender treats those parts of your income varies, and so does how they treat long periods of study and HELP debt.

That is why two lenders can give very different answers for the same doctor. The aim is to match your situation to a lender whose policy fits, and to present your income clearly.

LMI waivers for eligible medical professionals

Lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) is normally required when your deposit is below 20%. Several major lenders publish policies that may waive LMI for eligible medical professionals, in some cases at higher loan-to-value ratios than for other borrowers. Published policies commonly refer to maximum LVRs in the 90–95% range, subject to the lender, the profession and the loan.

Eligibility generally depends on:

• Your profession and current AHPRA registration
• Your employment type, for example hospital-employed or private practice
• A minimum deposit, often at least 5%
• Loan size limits set by the lender

Which waivers are available to you also depends on the lenders we are able to work with and on your circumstances. A waiver does not change a lender's other criteria, such as income, expenses and credit history, and the interest rate on offer may differ. LMI waivers are lender policies, not a government scheme. Government support such as the 5% Deposit Scheme is separate and is run by Housing Australia; confirm lender participation directly with your chosen provider.

How Mortgagefy helps doctors

• Compare lender options against your role, income structure and deposit
• Check whether an LMI waiver may be available to you
• Prepare your application with the right documents for your situation
• Explain the trade-offs between lenders in plain language

There is no obligation. We are a Sydney mortgage broker and we will tell you plainly where a lender's policy is unlikely to suit your situation, or where the lenders we work with may not offer a particular waiver.