Pennant Hills mortgage broker
Pennant Hills mortgage broker
A mortgage broker
who knows Pennant Hills.
An established rail suburb of long held family homes, where a lot of the lending questions are about what happens to a property when a family changes shape. We compare 35+ lenders and it costs you nothing.
35+
Lenders
10+
Years experience
1,000+
Clients helped
$0
Cost to you
About Pennant Hills
What the 2120 market actually looks like
History of Pennant Hills
Named for the signal station that once relayed messages between Sydney and the Hawkesbury, and settled around the timber industry before the railway arrived in the 1880s. The station shaped the suburb, and the streets around it filled in through the interwar and postwar decades with the housing that still defines it.
Pennant Hills property market
Detached family homes on established blocks, with townhouses and a modest number of apartments near the station. Households are settled rather than transient, the median age is higher than the newer Hills suburbs, and homes are commonly held for decades. What comes to market often does so because a family situation has changed.
Pennant Hills property prices
Well into the millions for houses, with townhouses and apartments considerably below. The range within the suburb is wide, since an original postwar house and a renovated one on the same street are very different propositions. Rents are low relative to what the houses cost, as is usual in an owner occupier suburb.
Borrowing in Pennant Hills
A lot of what we see here is not a straightforward purchase. Separations where one party keeps the house, estates where siblings inherit together, and older owners restructuring. Each has lending questions that a standard application never raises, and each is easier handled early than under pressure.
Pennant Hills is one of the suburbs we cover across the Hills District, and the one where the most loans follow a change in family circumstances.
Keeping the house
after a separation?
Refinancing into one name has its own rules, and duty may not apply the way you expect. Worth understanding early.
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.
Inherited a property
with siblings?
Buying the others out is a purchase in the lender eyes, with its own structure. We will walk through how it works.
Client stories
How we helped
Three real situations, and what actually happened in each one.
One name on the title.
A separation meant one of them was keeping the house and refinancing to buy out the other share. The new loan had to stand on one income alone, which is the real test in these situations rather than the paperwork. We worked through what was achievable before anything was agreed, so the settlement between them was built on a number that would actually be approved.
The estate had three names.
A property came to three siblings and one wanted to keep it. That is a purchase as far as a lender is concerned, funded by a loan in the buying sibling name to pay out the other two. We structured it so the loan settled as the transfer completed. Because the tax and duty treatment of estates is specialised, they took advice on that side separately.
Their parents were released.
Their parents had guaranteed part of the loan years earlier and nobody had revisited it. Once the property had moved in value and the balance had come down, their own borrowing sat comfortably under the threshold where the guarantee was needed. We arranged the release. No lender offers this unprompted, so it sits there quietly until someone thinks to ask.
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 Pennant Hills 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 Pennant Hills 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 at local 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
Pennant Hills questions, answered
Why use a mortgage broker in Pennant Hills?
Because lenders form quite different views of the same borrower, and a single bank shows you one of them. We compare 35+ lenders at no cost to you, prepare the application properly and stay across it through to settlement. Not every loan here is a straightforward purchase, which is where breadth matters. Brokers also have a legal duty called the Best Interests Duty.
Can I keep the house if a relationship ends?
Often, and the question that decides it is whether the loan stands on your income alone. That is the number worth establishing before anything is agreed between you, because a settlement built on a figure no lender will approve has to be renegotiated later. The other person also needs releasing from the existing loan, which means a refinance rather than a form.
How does buying out the other party work?
You refinance into your sole name for enough to clear the existing loan and pay out their share. The lender assesses you on your own, including any ongoing obligations you have taken on. Where a formal agreement or court order sets out the arrangement, lenders generally want to see it, so having that documented before applying makes the process considerably smoother.
What if I cannot service the loan on my own?
It is a common outcome and much better discovered early. The options include a smaller loan against a smaller settlement figure, bringing in a co-borrower, or accepting that the property is sold and both parties buy separately. None of those are easy conversations, and all of them are easier before positions are locked in than afterwards.
Can I buy out siblings on a property we inherited?
Yes, and a lender treats it as a purchase. You borrow in your own name to pay the other beneficiaries their share, and the loan settles as the transfer completes. The property is assessed as security like any other and you have to service the loan on your own position, which is usually where these arrangements need the most planning.
Does the estate need sorting out first?
The title has to be capable of transfer before anything can settle, and that process takes time. Starting the finance conversation while it is running rather than waiting until it completes avoids a gap where everyone is waiting on everyone else. Your solicitor manages the estate side and we work to their timetable.
Can I borrow with retirement approaching?
Often, and lenders will want to understand how the loan is handled once work stops. Superannuation, other assets or an intention to downsize are the usual answers. Some lenders shorten the term instead, which raises the repayment. Raising it at the start lets us approach lenders whose approach suits your circumstances rather than hitting an obstacle late.
Can a guarantee given years ago be released?
Yes, once the borrower loan has reduced enough against the value of their property, through repayments or growth. The part people miss is that no lender does this automatically. It sits in place until someone asks, sometimes years after it stopped being necessary, quietly restricting what the guarantor can borrow themselves. Worth checking if you guaranteed something long ago.
How much equity do I have available?
Broadly eighty per cent of what the property is worth today, less what you still owe, with lenders mortgage insurance generally returning past that. In a suburb where homes are held for decades that figure is frequently far larger than owners expect. What your income supports usually sets the practical limit rather than the equity itself.
What deposit does a buyer need here?
Twenty per cent avoids lenders mortgage insurance and at local house prices that is substantial, though apartments and townhouses near the station sit lower. Many buyers proceed with five or ten per cent and pay the insurance. Some occupations can have it waived and a family guarantee can reduce it further.
Does the 5% Deposit Scheme work in Pennant Hills?
At the apartment and townhouse end it can, provided the price sits under the scheme cap, while detached houses here sit well above it. The scheme lets an eligible first home buyer purchase with a 5% deposit and pay no lenders mortgage insurance, with Housing Australia guaranteeing the gap to 20%. Eligibility conditions apply and not every lender offers them.
What is an offset account?
A transaction account attached to your loan, where the balance is netted against the loan before interest is worked out. Money held there lowers the interest you pay while remaining accessible. It suits anyone carrying a working balance. Loans with an offset can carry a slightly higher rate or annual fee, so it depends on the balance you keep.
Offset or redraw?
Offset money remains in your own account and never enters the loan. Redraw money has already been paid in as extra repayments and the lender allows you to withdraw it under terms it can vary. Offset gives you firmer control over access, which matters where circumstances are changing. Redraw generally comes with simpler loans at a lower rate.
Fixed or variable?
Fixing gives a known repayment for an agreed period and means you do not benefit if rates fall. Variable follows the market and normally keeps an offset and unlimited extra repayments. Fixed loans usually cap extra repayments and can carry break costs on early exit, which is worth weighing if your situation might change during the term.
Can I split the loan?
Yes, and most lenders allow it at no additional cost. A split divides the borrowing into portions on different rates or terms, so you might fix part for certainty and leave the rest variable with an offset. It also lets you hold a portion on a shorter term. It is rarely suggested first, so it is worth asking.
Interest only or principal and interest?
Principal and interest reduces the balance and costs less over the loan. Interest only keeps the repayment lower for a period without touching what you owe, so the debt remains when the period ends and the repayment then rises. It is used far more on investment lending than on a home, where the tax side belongs with your accountant.
When is refinancing worth considering?
Whenever a couple of years have gone by without comparing, because lenders keep their better pricing for new customers and the gap grows quietly. It is also worth looking when a fixed term ends, when a guarantee could be released, or when your circumstances have changed enough that the existing structure no longer matches the situation.
What does refinancing cost?
Generally 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 settlement or valuation fees, though many waive them. Break costs on a fixed rate get checked first. Where names are changing on the loan, allow extra time for the paperwork.
Does the loan term reset?
It does unless you ask otherwise, and where retirement is in view that matters a great deal. Refinances default to a fresh thirty year term, which makes the repayment look smaller while pushing the end of the loan past when you intend to stop working. Ask for the remaining term. No lender offers this unprompted.
Can I buy before I sell?
Yes, and after a change in circumstances it often makes more sense than selling under time pressure. Bridging finance funds the new purchase while the current home is on the market. Where the equity allows, releasing it instead means the old property sells on your timetable rather than to a deadline someone else has set.
Should I keep the property and rent it out?
Worth pricing against selling before you decide. The questions are whether your income supports both loans once part of the rent counts, and whether the equity can be released without a sale. Holding a former home changes how it is treated for tax, and that conversation belongs with your accountant before anything is settled.
Can equity fund an investment purchase?
Yes, and in a suburb of long held homes the equity is usually ample. You release it to cover the deposit and costs on the investment, so nothing comes out of savings. Two loans result, one against each property, and keeping them separate preserves your flexibility later. Have your accountant review the structure before it is put in place.
The house is an older one. Does that affect the loan?
It can, and this is not something to answer with a general rule. How comfortable a lender is with a property in original condition, how much they will advance and whether anything is held back all differ between lenders and change over time. Send us the address and what you are planning, and we will check it across the panel.
Do we have to meet in person?
No. Everything runs by phone, Zoom or Teams, with documents shared and signed electronically. Where a separation or an estate is involved and the parties are not in the same room, that is usually far easier for everyone concerned. If you would rather meet face to face we come to you, including evenings and weekends.
Your Pennant Hills mortgage broker
Your home loan.
Made simple.
Free check. No pressure. 35+ lenders compared at $0 cost to you.
Pennant Hills sits on the railway between the Hills and the North Shore. Carlingford and North Rocks are south, with Epping and Beecroft on the line and Castle Hill and Baulkham Hills west. Glenhaven, Dural and Middle Dural run north into the acreage, with Kellyville, Norwest and Winston Hills across the corridor. We cover all of them, so if your search shifts a suburb or two, you are not starting from scratch.