Five Dock mortgage broker
Five Dock mortgage broker
A mortgage broker
who knows Five Dock.
A suburb of business owners, wide blocks, and half the street numbers ending in A. We compare 35+ lenders and it costs you nothing.
35+
Lenders
10+
Years experience
1,000+
Clients helped
$0
Cost to you
About Five Dock
What the 2046 market actually looks like
History of Five Dock
Named for a rock shelf on the bay that looked like five docks to whoever saw it first. A farming estate through the 1800s, then subdivided into the wide streets and generous blocks that still define it. Italian families arrived in numbers after the war and shaped Great North Road into the strip it is now, and a great many local businesses trace back to that generation.
Five Dock property market
Post war brick homes and Federation houses on land, with townhouses and villas through the middle and apartments along Great North Road. The wide blocks are why so many addresses here carry an A on the end, because building two dwellings where one stood has been the pattern for two decades. A Metro station is under construction, which will change what gets built around it.
Five Dock property prices
Houses sit well into the millions, with recent sales in the suburb reaching past three million, and apartments around a third of that. A newly built duplex half can sell for as much as a house. Postcode 2046 covers six suburbs, and several comparison sites quote state averages here rather than local figures, so any single number needs checking before you rely on it.
Borrowing in Five Dock
Two things stand out. A large share of buyers here run their own business, and lenders differ enormously on how they read business income. And a large share of the building is two dwellings on one block, which is a construction loan with its own rules rather than an ordinary purchase. Send us the address before you offer and we will tell you which lenders suit it.
Five Dock is one of 20 suburbs we cover across the Inner West, and the one where the most clients are building rather than simply buying.
Building two homes
where one stood?
That is a construction loan with its own rules, and lenders differ on how many dwellings they will fund on one title.
Your broker
Meet Ali Hasani
Ali Hasani is the founder of Buyvest. He has worked in home loans for more than ten years, a lot of it at Commonwealth Bank. We meet clients face to face, or by phone, Zoom and Teams, at night and on weekends as well as work hours. We take your loan to 35+ lenders, compare the numbers, and show you the options. Ali is an MFAA accredited broker with a Diploma of Finance and Mortgage Broking Management and a Post Graduate in Accounting.
Found the next one
before selling this one?
Bridging funds the purchase before your sale settles. It costs more for a few months and it beats losing the house.
Client stories
How we helped
Three real situations, and what actually happened in each one.
The return did not show it.
A business owner had been told by their own bank that the income did not support the loan. The bank read the taxable figure at the bottom of the return and stopped. We went through the financials and found what could be added back, including depreciation and one off costs that cut the taxable number without touching cash flow. A different lender counted those. Same business, very different answer.
Bridging carried them over.
They found the home they wanted before their own had sold, and the choice was to lose it or find a way through. We arranged bridging, which funds the new purchase while the old property is still on the market, so they bought first and sold afterwards without a deadline hanging over the sale. It costs more while both loans run, and that was a few months rather than years. The house was worth it.
Five per cent was enough.
A first home buyer had 5% saved and thought they had years of saving still ahead of them, because nobody had explained the government scheme to them. They assumed it was a grant with a queue, when it is a guarantee sitting behind your loan so the lender treats it as covered. Once they understood that, buying stopped being a someday plan and became something they were doing that year.
These are past client stories, with details changed for privacy. Your own result depends on your situation and what the lender decides.
Free guides
What to know before you buy
Three free guides covering how a Five Dock purchase actually runs, from pre-approval to settlement.
Home loan pre-approval
What it covers, and how long it lasts.
Read the guide
Choosing a home loan
Fixed, variable, offset and redraw.
Read the guide
Settlement day
What has to be ready before then.
Read the guide
Read the free guides in the Loan Vault to know how the home buying process works in NSW.
What we do
Home loans for every Five Dock plan
First home
Learn more
Next home
Learn more
Refinancing
Learn more
Construction loans
Learn more
Guarantor loans
Learn more
Self employed home loans
Learn more
Not sure where to start? See what a mortgage broker actually does.
When did you last
check your rate?
We compare your current home loan against 35+ lenders. If a refinance saves you money we will show you the numbers, and if it does not we will tell you that too.
Your job matters
Home loans by profession
Some lenders drop lenders mortgage insurance for certain jobs, and at Five Dock house prices that is a large sum. The lists and the limits differ from one lender to the next, so it is worth checking where yours sits.
Home loans for
Doctors
Learn more
Home loans for
Dentists
Learn more
Home loans for
Accountants
Learn more
Home loans for
Lawyers
Learn more
Not sure if your job is on a list? See No LMI and waived LMI home loans, or ask us and we will check every lender on our panel.
Plan ahead
Run the numbers
Free tools that show you where you stand right now.
How it works
Three steps to your loan
1
Financial health check
2
Get pre-approved
3
Settle, then stay in touch
Client reviews
5.0 ★★★★★ on Google
Reviews from clients across Sydney.
★★★★★
"Cannot recommend Ali highly enough. He made a complicated and daunting process incredibly easy, and continually went above and beyond. Would absolutely recommend him to everyone."
★★★★★
"Ali is super knowledgeable, reasonable and personable! He will be realistic with what is possible but always find you the best deal whilst making you feel looked after."
★★★★★
"Ali was very professional and was able to help with our complicated loans to refinance. He kept us up to date throughout the process and made sure my wife and I understood everything before signing and that we had no issues after settlement."
FAQ
Five Dock questions, answered
Why use a mortgage broker in Five Dock?
Because two things here are handled very differently from one lender to the next. Business income, since a great many Five Dock buyers run their own business and the taxable figure on a return is not the number that decides it. And building two dwellings on one block, which is a construction loan with rules of its own. A bank has one policy on both. Brokers also have a legal duty called the Best Interests Duty, which means we have to put you first.
I want to build two dwellings on one block. How does that work?
It is a construction loan rather than a normal purchase loan, and lenders vary more here than almost anywhere. Some fund two dwellings on one title without fuss, some cap what they will advance, and beyond two most move you onto commercial terms entirely. Funds release in stages against a fixed price contract and approved plans, and the lender values the finished result rather than the block. Council approval sets the timetable, so get that underway before the finance is locked in.
Can I sell one of the two and keep the other?
Usually, and it is the reason most people build two in the first place. What makes it possible is subdividing the title, which happens after completion and needs its own approval. Until that registers, both dwellings sit on one title and cannot be sold separately, so the finance has to carry the whole thing to that point. Lenders differ on how they treat the loan through that window, and the tax position on selling one belongs with your accountant.
I am self employed. How do lenders work out my income?
Most want two years of tax returns and company financials, though some accept one year and a few work from business bank statements. The number that matters is not the taxable figure at the bottom. Lenders add back items that reduced it without costing you cash, commonly depreciation, one off expenses and extra super contributions. What each lender adds back differs, which is why the same return produces very different answers across the panel.
How long do I need an ABN before a lender will look at me?
Most want to see two years of trading and two years of returns, which is the usual barrier for someone who has recently gone out on their own. Some lenders accept one year of financials where the business is established and the figures are strong. Where a trade or a business has been running under a different structure and only recently changed, the history can sometimes be read together rather than treated as a fresh start. It is worth asking rather than assuming you have to wait.
Does the Metro station under construction affect anything?
Not the lending. A valuer prices the property as it is on the day, not on what a station might do to the street in a few years, and lenders do not price transport access. What it does change is the stock, because rezoning around a station brings apartment supply that did not exist before. Where that matters is buying off the plan into something not yet built, since the bank values it at completion rather than when you sign.
Should I sell first or buy first?
In a suburb where the right house comes up rarely, buying first is more common than the textbook suggests. Sell first and your number is certain but you may be renting while you look. Buy first and bridging finance funds the purchase before the sale settles, which costs more while both loans run. Keeping the first place and letting it is the third route. Your equity and whether your income holds both loans decide which is genuinely open to you.
How does bridging finance actually work?
The lender funds the new purchase while the old property is still on the market, so for a period you hold both. Interest usually accrues on the whole amount rather than being repaid monthly, and once your sale settles the proceeds clear the bridging portion and you are left with the ongoing loan. Lenders set a maximum period, commonly six or twelve months, and they assess you on the end position rather than the peak. Realistic pricing on the sale matters more than anything else.
Can I buy my first home in Five Dock with a 5% deposit?
If you are an eligible first home buyer, often yes, and at that deposit it will be an apartment rather than a house given the gap between them here. The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme lets you buy with a 5% deposit and pay no lenders mortgage insurance, with Housing Australia guaranteeing the gap between your deposit and 20%. It is a guarantee, not a grant, and the government takes no share of your home.
How much deposit do I need in Five Dock?
A 20% deposit avoids lenders mortgage insurance, and on a Five Dock house that is a very large number. Apartments and villas are far more reachable. Plenty of buyers get in with 5 or 10% and pay the insurance instead, some professions can skip it, and a family guarantor loan can cut the deposit further again. If you are buying a block to build on, the deposit is worked out on the purchase price rather than the finished value.
How does a guarantor loan work?
A family member, usually a parent, offers part of the equity in their property as extra security for your loan. They do not make your repayments and no cash changes hands. Most are set up as a limited guarantee, so only a defined portion of their home is at risk. Around Five Dock the parent is often sitting on a house held since the sixties or seventies, which has done a great deal of the work already.
What is the difference between a guarantor and a co-borrower?
A guarantor supports the loan with their property but is not on the title or the debt. A co-borrower is on both, so the whole loan shows on their credit file and counts against whatever they want to borrow next. Co-borrowing lifts what you can afford because both incomes count. Where a parent is still running a business that may need finance of its own, that difference decides whether the bank says yes to them later.
What is an offset account and is it worth having?
An offset is a transaction account linked to your loan. Every dollar in it reduces the balance interest is charged on, without being locked away. For a business owner whose income arrives unevenly and who sets money aside for tax, it is particularly useful, because that money is working against your interest right up until the day it is paid out. If your account runs close to empty each month, a package fee can cost more than it saves.
Offset or redraw. What is the difference?
Redraw means paying extra off the loan and taking it back later. Offset means the money sits beside the loan in its own account. The interest effect is similar. What differs is access and treatment, because redraw can be restricted by the lender and money you redraw counts as new borrowing rather than your own savings returning. That matters more than usual here, where a second dwelling often ends up rented out, so offset is the cleaner structure. Your accountant can explain why.
Should I fix my rate or stay variable?
If you are building, the question waits, because most lenders keep a construction loan variable while funds draw down and fixing only becomes available once it converts. On a completed home, fixed buys certainty for one to five years while variable keeps flexibility, an offset and unlimited extra repayments. Most fixed loans have no usable offset, which matters if your income is uneven. Breaking one early is expensive, so the term matters more than the opening rate.
Can I split the loan between fixed and variable?
Yes, and for a household with business income it is often the sensible answer. You fix a portion for repayment certainty and leave the rest variable so the offset still works against it. A good rule is to leave at least as much variable as the balance you typically hold in offset, which for a business owner should include what is set aside for tax. Neither decision then has to be all or nothing.
Interest only or principal and interest?
On a home you live in, principal and interest is almost always the answer, because interest only means you owe the same at the end of the period as at the start. On an investment, including a second dwelling you have built and kept, it is a genuine question. The catch is that lenders assess an interest only loan on the repayment it reverts to, not what you pay now, so it eats into what you can borrow next. Worth discussing with your accountant as well as us.
Should I refinance once my build is finished?
It is worth checking, and the timing is specific to a build. A construction loan converts to a normal home loan at completion, often onto whatever rate that lender offers rather than a sharp one, and the property is worth considerably more finished than the block was. Both change your position at once. Plenty of people leave a converted construction loan untouched for years without realising it stopped being competitive the day it converted.
When I refinance, does my loan term reset?
Only if you let it, and at Five Dock loan sizes letting it is expensive. Most refinances default to a fresh thirty year term, which makes the monthly repayment look better while quietly adding years of interest on a large balance. Ask for the remaining term instead, so a loan with twenty two years left stays a twenty two year loan. Nobody offers this, so it has to be asked for every time.
How much does it cost to refinance a home loan?
Usually a few hundred dollars to around a thousand. Your current lender charges a discharge fee, there are government fees to move the mortgage, and the new lender may charge a settlement or valuation fee, though plenty waive them. If you are on a fixed rate there can be break costs, so they get checked first. Where two dwellings sit on one title, expect a full valuation rather than a desktop one.
I live in Five Dock but want to buy elsewhere. Does that matter?
Far less than people expect. A lender assesses you, then it assesses the property you are buying. Where you currently live barely features. What does matter is the postcode and property type you are buying into, because lender restrictions attach to the security rather than to your address. Plenty of Five Dock owners use the equity in a long held family home to buy an investment somewhere with a stronger yield.
Should I use my bank or a mortgage broker?
A bank can only offer its own loans and its own way of reading your income. If you are self employed that second point is the whole game, because one lender's add back policy can be the difference between yes and no on identical figures. On a two dwelling build they differ again. You usually find out after you have applied. A broker checks it against many lenders first. Buyvest compares 35+ lenders at $0 cost to you.
Your Five Dock mortgage broker
Your home loan.
Made simple.
Free check. No pressure. 35+ lenders compared at $0 cost to you.
Five Dock sits at the centre of the Canada Bay peninsula, so its neighbours ring it closely. Abbotsford shares the postcode and Haberfield sits south, with Ashfield and Summer Hill along Parramatta Road. East towards the water are Leichhardt, Lilyfield, Rozelle and Annandale. West sit Strathfield and Homebush, and the terrace belt runs south through Petersham and Dulwich Hill. We cover all of them, so if your search shifts a suburb or two, you are not starting from scratch.