How to buy a house in Australia in 2026

How do I buy a house in Australia?

Here are the basic steps in the home buying process.

1. Figure out your budget and goals
2. Work out how much you can borrow
3. Research the property market
4. Pick the property right for you
5. Compare home loans
6. Complete the purchase
7. Prepare for settlement
8. Get ready to move in

1. Figure out your budget and goals

Are you looking to buy a house to live in or an investment property? Are you planning to have children soon? Do you want an apartment, house or townhouse?

What is your budget, realistically?

Answering these questions is a really important first step. You can even change your mind as you do more research. But you have to have some idea at the start.

Figuring out a realistic budget

One way to figure out how much you can afford to spend on a home is to determine your deposit size and then look at how much a home loan of a certain size would cost you each month.

Use a repayment calculator. Input a hypothetical borrowing amount and a realistic interest rate to see how much you'd have to repay each month. Can you afford the repayments? If not you should recalculate with a lower loan size.

2. Work out how much you can borrow

How much you can borrow for your home loan really depends on your individual circumstances. But it is definitely worth estimating your borrowing power before you start to search for properties.

You can use Finder's borrowing power calculator, but it's a good idea to try multiple bank calculators too.

What affects your borrowing power

1. Your income. The more you earn the more you can borrow. If you're a low-income earner or you're receiving Centrelink benefits, it may be more difficult to qualify for a home loan.
2. Your personal circumstances. Every dependent child you have lowers your borrowing amount. Most lenders want borrowers who have been employed in the same job for at least 12 months.
3. Your existing debts. A lender will review your credit report and look at your current debt levels, including limits on your credit cards and HECS-HELP debt. If you have bad credit, you may not be a good candidate for a home loan application. However, there are lenders that specialise in borrowers with bad credit.
4. Your deposit. Ideally, you want to come up with at least a 20% deposit so you can avoid paying lenders mortgage insurance (LMI). If you don't have at least 10-20% deposit saved, there are low-deposit loans available.

Don't forget your other costs

As well as the mortgage you need to consider costs like government charges, lenders fees and other costs like conveyancing. Some of the major upfront costs include stamp duty, building and pest inspections, settlement fees and lenders mortgage insurance (LMI).

Learn how to estimate your home-buying costs.

3. Research the property market

How your property location fits into your lifestyle is one of the most important decisions you'll make in the home buying process. It's a matter of balancing your priorities and finding a suitable location that will match your needs and financial situation.

You need to carefully consider the geographic location of your property and how this will satisfy your lifestyle needs, particularly if you intend to stay there for an extended period of time.

You may also find that building your home may be a worthwhile option. If this is a consideration you should keep in mind suburbs with potential for future growth.

Learn how to research suburbs

4. Pick the right property for you

After fine-tuning different locations for your future home, you now need to research different properties that are listed on the market within these suburbs.

Here are some things to keep top of mind when deciding on property type.

Property size

How many bedrooms and bathrooms do you need? Is the amount of space you need now the same as the space you'll need in the future? Do you want an extra bedroom for guests or potential tenants?

Think about your lifestyle needs and the property size that will allow you to live comfortably.

House or unit?

One of the biggest choices you'll have to make when selecting a property is whether to buy a house or a unit. While houses are typically more expensive, they've historically seen higher levels of capital growth. A detached house also offers more flexibility for renovations and additions.

Units have a lower price point than detached houses, so can be a good choice for first home buyers.

Should you buy a house or unit?

5. Compare home loans

You can start searching for a home loan once you've signed a contract to buy a property. But you can actually start this process before you find the right home.

When you're comparing home loans, consider the following:

• Interest rate. Ideally, you want to find a home loan that offers a competitive interest rate by market standards. A lower interest rate can go a long way in helping you maximise your savings.
• Fees. When comparing different home loans, you should keep an eye out for application or establishment fees, ongoing fees and discharge fees. Finding a home loan with fewer fees will help you to minimise your holding mortgage costs.
• Features. As mentioned previously, there are many competitive features available that can help you save money. Compare if the lender allows you to make additional repayments without penalty, if a free redraw is available, if a 100% offset account is available, if split loans are offered, if the lender provides packaged discounts, and if salary crediting is offered.

Applying for a home loan

At this stage different steps overlap somewhat. The purchase and settlement overlap with getting a home loan.

You can't apply for a home loan until you've found a house to buy and exchanged contracts.

But you can get pre-approval. This is where a lender gives you an indication of how much you can borrow. This gives you a good idea of your borrowing power. But the lender is under no obligation to offer you a home loan.

Once you're ready to buy you can submit a full home loan application. You'll need to provide ID to your lender plus documents that support your application (details of your income, debts and monthly spending).

6. Complete the purchase

Once you’ve completed your preliminary research, and organised your finance, you're ready to buy.

• Make an offer (or bid). Houses in Australia are generally sold in two ways: via private treaty or auction. With a private treaty sale the property owner sets the sale price and the real estate agent negotiates with buyers to achieve the highest possible sales price. An auction involves multiple buyers bidding on the property at the same time.
• Get inspections done. If you're buying by private treaty you can organise a building and pest inspection before settlement, and even make the contract "subject to building and pest inspection", which means the sale only goes through if the building is in good condition. If you're buying by auction you have to organise this before the auction (and hope you're the winner).
• Engage a conveyancer. If you win at auction or your offer is accepted in a private treaty sale, the next step will be to exchange contracts and pay your deposit to the vendor. Make sure to have a conveyancer or solicitor inspect the contract of sale and handle settlement.

Expert tips: how to bid at auction

7. Prepare for settlement

Once contracts are exchanged, you'll be headed towards settlement day. Settlement is the process of paying the vendor and changing ownership of the home.

Your lender will disburse funds for your home loan and you'll receive your keys. You'll now need to sort out your home loan (if you haven't already started looking). And you'll need to make sure you have enough funds in your account to cover settlement, legal and conveyancing fees, as well as stamp duty.

8. Get ready to move in

Once the settlement is complete, the property is all yours.

Before making the transition, ensure that you're fully prepared to enjoy life in your new home from the moment you get the keys.

• Sort through your belongings. Now is the time to ruthlessly cull anything you don't need or won't use.
• Transfer accounts. Move all your services and utilities to your new address, and have your mail redirected.
• Pack. It's a good idea to categorise your boxes by room for easy unpacking at your new residence.
• Book removalists. It's wise to leave yourself a buffer of a few days between settlement day and your removalists coming. If you don't and run into any delays at settlement, it could add significant cost to your removalist bill.

Keep track of your move with our downloadable checklist

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is the first home buyers grant in Australia?

  The First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) is a government scheme designed to help first-time homebuyers purchase a home by providing a one-time grant. The amount and eligibility rules vary by state and territory, so check your state or territory revenue office for the current grant.

• How much deposit do I need for a home loan?

  Typically, a 20% deposit is recommended to avoid paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI). However, some home loans allow for lower deposits, such as 5% or 10%, which is especially useful for first-time buyers.

• How does the first home guarantee work?

  The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (formerly the Home Guarantee Scheme) allows eligible first home buyers to purchase a home with as little as a 5% deposit. The government guarantees up to 15% of the property's value to your lender, so you don't have to pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI). Since 1 October 2025, the scheme has had no income caps and no limit on places.

• Pros and cons of buying a house

  Houses offer more space, more renovation options and more privacy. But you're on the hook for more property maintenance, especially if you have a garden or buy an older property.

  Pros

  • Floor space. If you want to conquer the final frontier and get more space for your family to live in comfortably, houses offer far more room to move than apartments.
  • Outdoor space. If you have a green thumb, you want to expand your home or if you have young kids, a backyard is useful. You can build a pergola or entertaining area and enjoy the freedom of having your own outdoor space.
  • Flexibility. If you own a house, you can more or less do what you want – there are no owners' corporation or strata laws to abide by. As long as you keep council and building regulations in mind, you're pretty much free to renovate however you like. You can expand or upgrade the house, adding to your equity and making the place more liveable.
  • Privacy. Another benefit of living in a house instead of an apartment is that you're generally not living in as close proximity to your neighbours. So you can enjoy your life without having to worry about disturbing your neighbours (or being disturbed by them).
  • Greater value. House prices grow faster, on average, than apartments. This means you can build wealth more easily just by owning a house.

  Cons

  • Higher prices. Houses are almost always more expensive than comparable units in similar neighbourhoods. This means you either save a bigger deposit and borrow more or buy a house in a cheaper suburb.
  • Maintenance. Lawns need mowing, gutters need cleaning, trees need trimming and windows need washing. A house can be a lot of work. That's fine if you love DIY projects and gardening. If you don't, the extreme low maintenance aspect of apartment living is pretty appealing.
  • Higher costs (and more bills). Living in a house is generally more expensive than living in an apartment. You have more space to heat and cool, and more furniture and equipment to buy.

• Pros and cons of buying an apartment

  Owning a unit or apartment means less maintenance, but you have the extra cost of strata or body corporate fees. And your neighbours live just one wall, floor or ceiling away.

  Pros

  • More affordable. While there are some exceptions to the rule, apartments are generally cheaper to buy than houses.
  • Less maintenance. You don't have to mow the lawn or tend to the garden when you own an apartment. There's also the fact that there are plenty of maintenance tasks that can be looked after by strata, meaning you have more free time to do whatever you want.
  • Low cost. While the reduced space of apartments can be a drawback, it also results in cheaper electricity and gas bills.
  • Location. Many apartments are built near city centres, allowing you to live closer to everything, from transport and schools to restaurants and even your work.
  • Extra facilities. Owning an apartment might also give you access to a whole host of building facilities. There could be a pool, gym, tennis court, playground and even a shared garden. These added inclusions need to be taken into account when deciding whether to buy an apartment or a house.
  • Security. Thieves often have to pass through several layers of security to get to your apartment door, which isn't the case with many houses.

  Cons

  • Strata/owners' corporation by-laws. Living in an apartment means abiding by the rules imposed by the owners' corporation, such as not hanging washing over the balcony or not having pets in the property. If you want to renovate or upgrade your apartment, you may need to seek approval first.
  • Fees. You'll also need to pay a fee to the owners' corporation to cover shared maintenance costs, so remember to take this into consideration when calculating total costs.
  • Less space. Apartments don't offer as much living space as houses.
  • Less privacy. If you don't like listening to your neighbours fight, entertain guests or get up to anything else in the privacy of their own home – or the fact that they can probably hear you doing the same things – apartment living may not be for you.

Written by

Richard Whitten

Senior Money Editor

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Richard Whitten is Finder’s Senior Money Editor, with over eight years of experience in home loans, property, credit cards and personal finance. His insights appear in top media outlets like Yahoo Finance, Money Magazine, and the Herald Sun, and he frequently offers expert commentary on television and radio, helping Australians navigate mortgages and property ownership. Richard started his career in education and textbook publishing in South Korea. He holds multiple industry certifications, including a Certificate IV in Mortgage Broking (RG 206) and Tier 1 and Tier 2 certifications (RG 146), as well as a Bachelor of Education from the University of Sydney and a Graduate Certificate in Communications from Deakin University. See full bio

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Sarah is the author of How to Raise Rich Kids. With over 20 years of experience in property, finance and investment journalism, she is a trusted expert whose insights regularly appear across television, radio and print media, including Sunrise, Channel 7 News, Bloomberg and Yahoo! Finance. She has previously served as managing editor for Your Investment Property and Australian Broker. Her expert advice has been shared in the media over 4,000 times. Sarah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, which complies with ASIC standards. See full bio

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