Most lenders want 20% of the purchase price to avoid Lenders Mortgage Insurance, and that's before stamp duty, legal fees and a buffer for the early months. You can buy with a smaller deposit, often around 10%, but LMI will usually apply, and some lenders are stricter about investment loans than owner-occupied ones. Interest rates on investment loans also tend to be a little higher than on a loan for the home you live in. The good news is that your deposit doesn't have to be cash. If you already own a property with equity in it, that can do the job. We'll tell you where you stand before you start inspecting properties.

Often, yes, and it's one of the most common ways people get started. Usable equity is roughly 80% of your home's value minus what you still owe, and that amount can be released as a separate loan to cover the deposit and costs. How it's structured matters. Cross-collateralising (tying both properties to the same loan) can limit your options later and give the lender more control, so we usually prefer separate loans where we can. Releasing equity can also happen through mortgage refinancing, which is worth considering if your current rate is no longer competitive. We work out how much you can safely borrow, not just how much a lender will approve.

It depends on your goals and your cash flow. Interest-only loans keep repayments lower for a set period, commonly up to five years, and many investors like them because the interest is generally the deductible cost. The trade-off is that you aren't paying down the debt, the rate is often slightly higher, and when the period ends your repayments jump, because the loan has to be paid off over a shorter remaining term. Principal and interest builds equity faster and usually costs less overall. Some investors split the two. We'll show you both options with real figures, including what happens in year six, so there are no surprises. Ask your accountant about the tax side too.

Lenders don't count every dollar of rent. Most include only around 70% to 80% of expected rental income, to allow for vacancies and costs like agent fees and repairs. A property that's negatively geared, meaning the costs are higher than the rent, can also reduce your borrowing power, because the lender takes the shortfall into account. That surprises many first-time investors who expect the tax benefit to carry them. We run your numbers the way a lender would before you go to contract, so you know how much room you'll have for a second property. This is general information, not tax advice, so check the tax side with your accountant.

Both are possible, but they work quite differently from a standard loan. With SMSF home loans, the fund itself borrows through a limited recourse structure, and the property has to meet the sole purpose test, so lenders ask for a lower loan-to-value ratio and some cash left in the fund. Compliance is strict, and we work alongside your accountant or SMSF specialist. For investors who want to avoid interest, Shariah-compliant finance is available through selected providers, typically using lease-based or cost-plus structures rather than a conventional loan. Options are fewer, and terms differ by provider. As an Islamic finance broker, we'll explain exactly how each one works before you decide.

Yes, and plenty of Sydney investors do, usually because they find better value or rental yield elsewhere. The loan itself works much the same wherever the property is. Lenders look at your income, debts and equity, although some limit lending in certain postcodes or on small apartments. What changes is everything around it. Stamp duty and land tax thresholds are set by each state, so a property that looks cheap on paper can cost more to hold than you expected. We're a mortgage broker in Melbourne as well as Sydney, so we can structure the finance, and your accountant or conveyancer should confirm the state-based costs before you sign.