How much would a lender actually let me borrow?
Most borrowing calculators flatter you. This one works the way a lender does — after-tax income, benchmark living expenses, your other commitments, and the 3% serviceability buffer on top of the interest rate. Fewer surprises later.
Lenders only count about 80% of rent, to allow for vacancies and costs — we do the same.
Car loans, personal loans, HECS repayments — anything that leaves your account monthly.
Lenders assess the limit, not the balance — even if you pay it off in full every month. A $20k limit you never use still shrinks your borrowing power.
Lenders test you at this rate plus 3% — the APRA serviceability buffer. We apply it automatically.
Budget excludes stamp duty and purchase costs — set aside roughly 4–5% of the price for those.
Where your monthly income goes
This is your household's monthly income, sliced the way a lender's servicing calculator slices it. The navy segment is what's left to service a loan.
How rates move your number
Your borrowing power isn't a fixed number — every rate move re-draws it. This is why pre-approvals go stale and why timing matters.
Assumptions behind this calculator
- Income is taxed at 2025–26 Australian resident rates including the Medicare levy and low income tax offset; HECS/HELP and other offsets aren't modelled.
- Living expenses use the higher of your figure and a simplified household benchmark (as lenders do with HEM).
- Credit cards are assessed at 3.8% of the total limit per month; rental income is shaded to 80%.
- The loan is assessed over 30 years at your rate plus a 3% buffer, principal & interest.
- Real lenders differ enormously — especially with bonus income, RSUs, foreign income and self-employment. That's the gap a broker closes.
A calculator gives you a number. I give you a plan.
These tools use one set of assumptions. Lenders use forty different ones — and matching your situation to the right credit policy is usually worth far more than any online estimate. Twenty minutes, no cost, no obligation.
Things to know: these calculators are a guide only. Results are estimates based on the figures you enter and the assumptions stated on this page — they don't take into account all fees and charges, changes in interest rates, or your full personal circumstances, and they are not a loan offer, pre-approval, or credit advice. Every lender assesses applications differently, and your actual borrowing capacity, repayments and savings may be higher or lower. Before acting, consider whether the results are right for your situation — or better yet, talk it through with a broker. Wombat Home Loans is a Credit Representative of Loans Only Pty Ltd, Australian Credit Licence 561324.