Not the way you'd work it out yourself. Lenders usually look at the last two years of tax returns and average your taxable income, which is the figure after your deductions. Some then add back certain expenses, such as depreciation, interest or one-off costs, which can lift your borrowing power. Sole traders are assessed on net business income. If you own a company, the lender looks at the salary and dividends you pay yourself, and some also count a share of the profit left in the business. Every lender has its own rules about what gets added back, and that difference can be worth tens of thousands in borrowing power.

It can. Deductions that keep your tax bill low also keep your assessable income low, and lenders usually work from that smaller number. A business that's genuinely doing well can look average on paper. If you're planning to buy in the next year or two, talk to your accountant and to us before the end of the financial year, not after. Sometimes the right call is to keep your usual tax strategy and find a lender who adds back more. In other cases, it's worth thinking about the bigger picture. We're not tax advisers, so decisions about your tax should always sit with your accountant.

It makes things harder, but it doesn't end the conversation. Many lenders use the lower of your last two years, or the most recent year if it fell. A one-off dip with a clear reason, such as a big equipment purchase, a lost client or time off, can sometimes be explained in a letter from your accountant. If your income has recovered since, current BAS statements can help show the trend. Where income has gone up, a few lenders will use the latest year rather than an average, which works in your favour. Timing matters, so we look at when you apply as well as how.

Yes, quite a lot. For a company, lenders look at what you earn personally and sometimes at the company's financials too, such as retained profits, depending on your ownership share. For a trust, they look at the distributions you've received over the past couple of years, along with the trust's own tax returns. Business structures that are good for tax can look complicated to a credit assessor, so how the paperwork is presented matters. We know which lenders are comfortable with company and trust income, and which aren't, so you don't waste applications finding out. It also helps to have your accountant's financials up to date before we start.

They can, even when the business is the one making the repayments. Lenders count personal and business credit cards at their full limit, plus any equipment finance, business loans and sometimes buy now, pay later accounts. If you owe the ATO and are on a payment plan, expect questions about that too. A tidy-up before applying often helps, whether that's closing unused cards or paying down smaller balances. It's also worth keeping business and personal borrowing separate where you can, which makes everything easier to assess later. As a business and commercial lending broker, we can look at both sides, so one loan doesn't undermine the other.

Someone who knows how different lenders treat self-employed income, because that's where the real differences are. Ask which lenders add back depreciation, how they treat a company's retained profits and which ones accept an accountant's letter. A broker who can answer straight away has done this before. You also want someone who'll work around your day, since you're running a business, not waiting by the phone. The best mortgage broker in Sydney for loans for self-employed clients isn't the one with the loudest promises. It's the one who tells you honestly whether to apply now or wait six months and get a better result.