Home Loans With a New Job or Probation in South West Sydney, NSW, What Lenders Actually Check
Starting a new role is exciting, but if you're also trying to buy a home, you've probably heard that you need to wait out your probation period first. That's not always true, and for many buyers in South West Sydney, it doesn't have to slow you down.
Whether you've just moved from one employer to another in the same field, stepped up from casual to permanent, or taken a role at a new company entirely, lenders read each of those situations differently. Some will approve your loan on day one of a new job. Others want probation completed. The difference between those two positions can be tens of thousands of dollars in what you can borrow, and which lender you're sitting in front of.
Our team works with buyers across South West Sydney, NSW in exactly this position, comparing your options across 40+ lenders. Understanding how home loan assessment works when your employment is new is where most of the difference is made.
Key takeaways
- Many lenders approve home loans before probation ends.
- Staying in the same field is the single biggest approval factor.
- A 20% deposit removes most lender hesitation about new employment.
Can you get a home loan while on probation in South West Sydney?
Yes, and more lenders will consider it than most buyers realise. The condition that matters most isn't whether your probation has ended, but whether your new role is in the same field as your previous one. A nurse moving from one hospital to another, an accountant changing firms, or a teacher moving schools all present very differently to a lender than someone who has changed industries entirely.
Where the field is consistent and the income is the same or higher, a number of lenders will approve at any point during probation, including day one. Some require a signed employment contract and nothing else. Others want the probation completed before they'll issue formal approval. Knowing which lender sits where on that spectrum is the practical question, and it's not published in a comparison table anywhere.
How do lenders actually read a new job when you apply for a home loan?
Lenders aren't simply checking whether you're past a date. They're trying to answer one question: how likely is this income to continue? A new role in the same field with a higher base salary and a permanent contract is actually a stronger application than a five-year tenure in a casual position. An industry change, even into a higher-paying role, introduces uncertainty that most lenders price cautiously.
What lenders look at when employment is new:
- › Field continuity: same industry and similar role type carries significantly more weight than a higher salary in a new field.
- › Contract type: permanent full-time is assessed more favourably than fixed-term or casual, even in a new role.
- › Employment letter: a signed offer letter or contract confirming the role, salary and start date is the minimum evidence most lenders require.
- › Payslips: even one or two payslips from the new role strengthen the application considerably, because they confirm the role started and income matches the contract.
- › Prior employment history: a consistent two-year history in the same field before the new role removes most of the risk in a lender's eyes, even without probation complete.
"What we see most often is buyers who've been told 'wait until probation is over' by their own bank, when there are three or four lenders on our panel who would look at the same application today. The gap isn't in the policy - it's in which lender they walked into."
Dimitri Giannopoulos · Director, Infinity Mortgage Brokers · Chat to Dimitri →
What do you need to qualify for a home loan with a new job?
The evidence lenders want depends on how long you've been in the new role and whether your field has changed. There's no single requirement that applies universally, but this is the core of what most lenders will ask for:
- › Signed employment contract or letter: the minimum for almost every lender; must confirm role type, base salary and start date.
- › Payslips from the new role: one or two payslips from the current employer confirm the role is active and income matches the contract.
- › Previous employment evidence: payslips or a reference from the previous employer showing consistent income in the same field strengthens field-continuity.
- › Tax returns (if relevant): where the new role follows a period of self-employment or contracting, most lenders want two years of tax returns from that period alongside the new contract.
- › Clean credit file: a new employment situation puts more attention on every other part of the application, so any outstanding defaults or payment issues become more significant.
If you've changed industries and the new role is on a fixed-term or contract basis, most lenders will want to see probation completed before issuing formal approval. In that scenario, a pre-approval conditional on a start date is still worth getting, because it locks in the assessed borrowing capacity and stops the property search from stalling.
How much can you borrow in South West Sydney, NSW with a new job?
Your borrowing capacity is calculated on your base salary in the new role. The APRA serviceability buffer of 3.0% is applied on top of the actual rate, so you're assessed at roughly 9% rather than the rate you'd actually pay. Where your new role pays more than the previous one, that uplift flows straight through to your assessed capacity.
What moves capacity when employment is new:
The options worth weighing:
- › 20% deposit, same field: standard borrowing capacity · no LMI · most lenders approve before probation ends · strongest position available
- › 5-10% deposit, same field: LMI applies · narrower lender panel · some lenders still approve on probation · pre-approval conditional on contract
- › Industry change, any deposit: most lenders want probation completed · fixed-term roles assessed more cautiously · larger deposit helps · panel narrows further
House medians across the South West Sydney suburbs our buyers typically look at run from around $1,300,000 in Liverpool up to $1,653,000 in Padstow, with Edmondson Park and Wattle Grove sitting closer to $1,340,000 and $1,363,000 respectively for those buying into newer estates. Units in Liverpool have a median of $530,000 and Bass Hill units sit around $972,500, which makes a material difference for first home buyers where a new employment situation is also in play.
Source: CoreLogic (via YIP, mid-2026) and APRA.
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What government schemes can you use with a new job or during probation?
Your employment situation doesn't disqualify you from any of the major federal schemes, because eligibility turns on income, deposit size and property price rather than how long you've been in a role. What matters is that your income is assessable at the time of application.
Schemes available to new-job buyers in South West Sydney:
- › First Home Guarantee: 5% deposit, no LMI, no income test. Price cap $1,500,000 for all approved South West Sydney suburbs. First home buyers only.
- › Family Home Guarantee: single parents or guardians, 2% deposit, no LMI, no income test. Does not require first home buyer status. Same $1,500,000 price cap.
- › Help to Buy: federal shared equity, government takes up to 40% in a new home or 30% in an existing one. Income cap $103,000 single or $165,000 joint. Property price cap $1,300,000 for Sydney.
- › NSW First Home Owner Grant:$10,000 for new homes up to $600,000 (or $750,000 for house-and-land). Stamp duty exemption applies for established homes up to $800,000.
The practical catch: a lender still needs to be comfortable with your employment before it will approve the loan, regardless of which scheme applies. The scheme gets you the deposit structure; the lender still has to sign off on the income.
Source: Housing Australia and Revenue NSW.
How do mortgage brokers help buyers in a new job or on probation in South West Sydney, NSW?
The lender choice decides the outcome more than almost any other factor when your employment is new. Three things differ meaningfully between lenders, and they're not published in any comparison table.
- › Probation policy: some lenders approve on day one with a contract; others require probation completed before they'll issue formal approval, regardless of field continuity.
- › Field-change tolerance: lenders differ significantly on how far an industry change has to go before they treat the income as uncertain; what one lender reads as the same broad sector, another treats as a full change of career.
- › Contract-only approval: a small number of lenders will assess a signed contract as sufficient income evidence with no payslips yet, which matters if you're buying before your first pay cycle.
Matching the right lender to your exact situation before the application goes in means you're not declined on a policy the lender didn't advertise. A decline on your credit file makes the next application harder.
When does a new job make a home loan harder, not just different?
There are situations where a new role genuinely does complicate the application, and it's worth being clear about them rather than hoping the lender won't notice.
A career change into a field with no employment history is the scenario lenders are most cautious about, particularly where the new income is higher and the role is not yet permanent. The lender can't rely on the field history to back up the income, and if the probation period is also long, formal approval may need to wait. In that situation, a larger deposit is the best way to reduce the risk the lender is carrying, and waiting one reporting period can make a meaningful difference to which lenders will look at the file.
A fixed-term contract, even in the same field, also attracts more scrutiny than a permanent role, because the contract has an end date and the lender has to consider what happens at the end of it. Where the contract has a track record of renewal or sits inside a sector where rolling contracts are standard, some lenders will accept it. Where the role is genuinely new and fixed-term, most will want to see it convert to permanent before formal approval.
If your new role involves a significant variable income component, like commission or an at-risk bonus, most lenders won't count that variable component until it has a history, which means your assessed income sits at base salary only. In that case, we'd usually recommend applying when you have at least one reporting period of variable income on the books, rather than now, because the difference in what you can borrow can be substantial.
"Where the new role is in the same field and the income is higher, I'd rather apply now and find the right lender than wait six months. But where the field has changed and the contract is short, I'd usually wait out the first probation period - a declined application costs more than a few months."
Dimitri Giannopoulos · Director, Infinity Mortgage Brokers · Chat to Dimitri →
What can go wrong when applying for a home loan with a new job?
Where buyers lose ground:
- › Applying to the wrong lender first: a declined application sits on your credit file and makes the next one harder, even if the second lender's policy would have approved you. The order of applications matters.
- › Counting variable income before it's established: a buyer who builds their purchase budget around a commission structure that lenders won't assess until it has a history often finds their borrowing capacity assessed significantly lower than expected.
- › Changing jobs again during the application: a second job change while a loan is in assessment will typically require the whole file to be rebuilt from the new employment evidence, which resets the timeline and can void a conditional approval.
- › Waiting too long unnecessarily: buyers who have a permanent role in the same field and a deposit of 20% sometimes wait months before applying, when most lenders on the panel would have looked at the file on day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get a home loan if I just started a new job?
Yes, many lenders will approve a home loan on day one of a new role if you're in the same field and hold a permanent contract. An employment letter confirming the salary and start date is the minimum evidence required by most.
Do I need to wait until probation is finished to apply?
Not always. Some lenders approve during probation where field continuity is clear; others require it completed. A broker can identify which lenders will look at your file now rather than later, which saves you a declined application.
Does a career change make it impossible to get approved?
Not impossible, but it narrows the lender panel considerably. Most lenders want to see probation completed where the field has changed, and a larger deposit reduces the risk they're being asked to take.
Will lenders count commission or bonus income in a new role?
Generally not until the variable income has a documented history, typically one to two years. Most lenders assess base salary only for a new role, which can reduce your borrowing capacity significantly if variable income makes up a large share of your total pay.
Is it better to wait until probation ends before buying?
It depends entirely on the field change and deposit size. Same field, 20% deposit, permanent contract: waiting is usually unnecessary. Career change, short-term contract, smaller deposit: waiting one reporting period is usually the right call.
Should I use a mortgage broker or go to my own bank when I'm on probation?
A mortgage broker, every time. Your own bank applies its own policy and gives you one answer. A broker compares across 40+ lenders simultaneously and can identify which ones will approve your specific employment situation before any application is lodged.
Your Next Steps
Whether you've just started a new role, you're mid-probation, or you changed industries and aren't sure where you stand, the answer depends on the specifics of your employment and your deposit. The right lender is almost never the first one you'd think to call, and the difference between applying now and waiting six months can be the difference between the property you want and the one that's left.
Ready to find out which lenders will work best for your situation? Contact the Infinity Mortgage Brokers team or call 0426 955 190. We'll canvas our 40+ lender panel and find the most suitable options for your circumstances.
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External Resources
Infinity Mortgage Brokers, Bankstown and South West Sydney. This website is general information only and does not constitute financial advice. Please consider your own circumstances and seek professional advice before making any financial decisions.
