Lavender Bay mortgage broker
Lavender Bay mortgage broker
A mortgage broker
who knows Lavender Bay.
Around 800 adults, roughly ten times more apartments for sale than houses, and enough company title in the older blocks to catch a bank out. We compare 35+ lenders and it costs you nothing.
35+
Lenders
10+
Years experience
1,000+
Clients helped
$0
Cost to you
About Lavender Bay
What the 2060 market actually looks like
History of Lavender Bay
Named for a boatswain who ran the convict hulk moored here in the 1820s. The bay filled with boatsheds and baths through the nineteenth century, then the railway viaduct and the Bridge approach cut across it. Luna Park has sat on the foreshore since 1935, and Wendy Whiteley's Secret Garden grew on railway land that had been left to itself for decades.
Lavender Bay property market
Very small and almost entirely apartments. Listing data typically shows around ten times as many apartments for sale as houses, in blocks ranging from interwar walk ups to newer buildings on the slope. The handful of houses are terraces and semis on the steep streets above the water. Most residents rent, and the median age sits in the forties, so this is a market of singles, couples and downsizers rather than families.
Lavender Bay property prices
Apartments cover a wide band, with two bedroom units commonly guided in the low to mid one millions and anything with a genuine harbour outlook well above that. The few houses sit far higher again. With a population this small, published medians shift sharply on a handful of sales, so treat any single figure as a guide rather than a price.
Borrowing in Lavender Bay
Two things decide most of it. The title, because company title is common in older blocks here and a good number of lenders will not fund it at all. And the scheme size, since many of these buildings hold only a handful of lots, which changes how a levy lands and how a lender reads the capital works fund.
Lavender Bay is one of 32 suburbs we cover across the North Shore, and the smallest market on the list.
Is the apartment
company title?
Plenty of lenders will not fund it, and those that do lend less. Worth confirming from the contract before you offer.
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.
Paid in bonuses
or commission?
Some lenders count most of it, some count half, some ignore it entirely. On a city job that gap is large.
Client stories
How we helped
Three real situations, and what actually happened in each one.
Company title, and a lender.
The apartment they wanted was company title rather than strata, which they only discovered from the contract. Their own bank declined it outright. We went through which lenders on the panel write company title, what share of the value each would advance, and what documents the company itself had to provide. One lender was comfortable. The purchase went ahead on a title most banks will not touch.
The small block cost more.
Their capacity came back lower than expected and nobody had explained why. The building was a small scheme, and the levies in a block of that size are far heavier per owner than in a large one. A lender counts those levies as an ongoing property cost alongside rates and insurance. We could not make it disappear. What we could do was build the real figure into the plan rather than discovering it late.
Variable pay, read properly.
A large share of their income arrived as bonus and commission rather than base salary, and the first lender they approached counted very little of it. We took the same payslips and group certificates to lenders that assess variable income differently, and one counted a far greater share once the history was evidenced over two years. Same job, same money, a considerably larger loan.
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 Lavender Bay 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 Lavender Bay plan
First home
Learn more
Next home
Learn more
Investment property
Learn more
Refinancing
Learn more
Construction loans
Learn more
Bridging loans
Learn more
Guarantor loans
Learn more
No LMI and waived LMI
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 the city is one stop away. 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
Lavender Bay questions, answered
Why use a mortgage broker in Lavender Bay?
Because two things here narrow the lender field before your income is even considered. Company title, which appears in a number of the older blocks and which many lenders will not fund at all. And small strata schemes, where levies land far heavier per owner and a lender reads the capital works fund with that in mind. Brokers also have a legal duty called the Best Interests Duty, which means we have to put you first.
What is company title and why does it matter here?
With company title you own shares in a company that owns the building rather than owning the apartment itself, and the company can vet who buys in. It predates strata and survives in older blocks around the harbour, including here. A good number of lenders will not fund it at all, and those that do lend a smaller share of the value and want to read the company constitution. The contract tells you which it is, so check before you fall for the place.
How much deposit do I need for a company title apartment?
More than for strata, usually. Where a lender will consider company title at all, they commonly cap the advance well below what they would offer on a strata lot, which means a larger deposit from you. They may also want the company's financial position and its rules reviewed. The upside is that company title apartments generally sell below comparable strata ones, so the extra deposit is partly offset by the price.
Is a flat in a small block riskier for a lender?
Not riskier, but the numbers work differently and buyers rarely think it through. In a scheme of six or eight, the cost of waterproofing or a new roof divides among that many owners rather than eighty, so each share is far larger. Lenders read the capital works fund with that in mind, and they count the levies as an ongoing cost when working out what you can afford. A small well run scheme is perfectly good security.
What should I check in the strata report?
The balance of the capital works fund against the age of the building, any special levy struck or being discussed in the minutes, and whether there is a live dispute. Interwar and post war blocks reach a point where waterproofing, wiring and roofing all fall due within a few years of each other. On the steep sites here, retaining and drainage in common property are worth reading for too. Order it early rather than after exchange.
Do harbour views change the valuation?
A genuine outlook is priced above an equivalent apartment without one, and a valuer records it. Two things matter. A filtered or partial view carries far less weight than an uninterrupted one, and a view that is not protected can change if something is approved in front of it. The valuer takes the view as it is on the day. If most of the premium you are paying is for the outlook, it is worth understanding what could be built.
How do lenders treat bonus and commission income?
Cautiously, and very differently from each other. Most want to see it over a period, commonly two years, and then count only part of it, often somewhere between half and eighty per cent. A few will count more where the history is consistent and the employer confirms it is ongoing. In a suburb full of people working across the Bridge in finance and professional services, that difference decides what a great many buyers can borrow.
What about share plans or equity as part of my pay?
Harder again, and most lenders discount it heavily or leave it out. Where shares or units vest on a regular schedule and you have a history of receiving and selling them, a small number of lenders will count a portion. Unvested entitlements are almost never counted, since they are not yet yours. If a real share of your package comes this way, the choice of lender matters more than the rate you are chasing.
Is there a minimum apartment size lenders will accept?
Most set one, and the older blocks here include compact one bedders and studios that sit close to the line. It is usually measured on internal living area rather than the whole title, so a balcony and a car space do not count towards it. When a unit falls under, some lenders decline and others lend a much smaller share of the price. Every lender draws the line differently, so the floor plan is worth checking before you offer.
What happens when there are so few sales to compare against?
The valuer widens the search. In a suburb with only a few hundred dwellings there may be very little recent evidence, so they use older sales adjusted for market movement, or comparable apartments in neighbouring suburbs. Both involve judgement, which is why two lenders can return noticeably different numbers on the same apartment. It makes the valuation less predictable, so the buffer you hold before exchanging matters more than usual.
Can I buy my first home in Lavender Bay with a 5% deposit?
If you are an eligible first home buyer, sometimes, and the price has to sit under the scheme's property cap, which rules out a good share of the local stock. 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 to 20%. It is a guarantee, not a grant. Company title is generally not something scheme lenders will write, so the title matters here too.
How much deposit do I need in Lavender Bay?
A 20% deposit avoids lenders mortgage insurance, and on an apartment here that is a substantial but reachable figure for many buyers. Plenty get in with 5 or 10% and pay the insurance instead, and some professions skip it entirely. What changes the answer most is the building, because company title or a very small scheme can mean a lender wants considerably more than you planned for.
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. One thing to know here is that a guarantee does not rescue a title a lender will not fund, so the building still has to pass on its own merits.
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 two people buy an apartment here together without being a couple, that choice decides whether either can borrow alone afterwards.
How much of the rent will a lender count?
Not all of it. Lenders count a portion of the expected rent as income, commonly around eighty per cent, to allow for vacancy, management and costs, and they differ on the exact figure. They also assess the new loan at a rate well above the actual one. With most Lavender Bay residents renting, demand here is strong, so the rent does real work, just not as much as the rental appraisal suggests.
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. If your income arrives unevenly through bonuses, an offset suits that pattern well, because a lump sum sits against the loan from the day it lands. If your balance runs close to empty each month, a package fee can cost more than the offset 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. Where an apartment here is likely to be kept and let when you move on, offset is the cleaner structure. Your accountant can explain why.
Should I fix my rate or stay variable?
Fixed gives certainty for a set period, usually one to five years. Variable gives flexibility, an offset account and unlimited extra repayments. Most fixed loans do not come with a usable offset, which matters if a bonus arrives once a year and you want it working against the loan immediately. Breaking a fixed loan early can be expensive, so the term you choose matters more than the opening rate.
Can I split the loan between fixed and variable?
Yes, and for income that swings with bonuses it is often the sensible answer. You fix a portion so the base repayment is certain, and leave the rest variable so the offset still works and extra repayments stay unlimited when a good year lands. A good rule is to leave at least as much variable as the balance you typically hold in offset, including a buffer for levies in a small scheme.
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 it is a real question that turns on your wider position. The catch is that lenders assess an interest only loan on the repayment it reverts to, not what you pay now, so it cuts into what you can borrow next. Worth working through with your accountant.
When I refinance, does my loan term reset?
Only if you let it. Most refinances default to a fresh thirty year term, which makes the monthly repayment look better and quietly adds years of interest. Ask for the remaining term instead, so a loan with twenty three years left stays a twenty three year loan. Nobody offers this, so it has to be asked for. Where bonuses have gone into the loan over several years, resetting the term undoes that work.
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. On company title or in a small older block, expect a full valuation rather than a desktop one, because of the security rather than you, so allow a little more time.
I live in Lavender Bay 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 matters is the postcode and property type you are moving into, because lender restrictions attach to the security rather than your address. It also works in your favour here, since a company title apartment that narrowed your options on the way in does not narrow them on the way out.
Should I use my bank or a mortgage broker?
A bank can only offer its own loans and its own rules. In a suburb where company title is common, that single policy can end the purchase before your income is even assessed, and you usually find out after you have applied. A broker knows which lenders write these titles and buildings and checks it first. Buyvest compares 35+ lenders at $0 cost to you.
Your Lavender Bay mortgage broker
Your home loan.
Made simple.
Free check. No pressure. 35+ lenders compared at $0 cost to you.
Lavender Bay is small enough that everything around it is a short walk. McMahons Point is next door and Milsons Point the other side of the bay, with Kirribilli beyond it under the Bridge. North Sydney sits above and Wollstonecraft, Crows Nest and St Leonards run up the line. East along Military Road are Neutral Bay, Cremorne and Mosman, with Cammeray and Northbridge further north. We cover all of them, so if your search shifts a suburb or two, you are not starting from scratch.