The First Home Buyer Checklist we run every client through.

Stage 1 · Six to twelve months out

Most first home buyers start the conversation three months out and discover the work that should have started a year ago. Here is what to do early.

1. Pull your credit file. Equifax, Centrix and illion all let you request your file for free. Look for: defaults you don't recognise, debts that should have closed, addresses you've never lived at. Disputes can take 4 weeks to resolve. Don't apply for a mortgage with an open dispute.
2. Pull 90 days of bank statements. Lenders will read every line. They are looking for: rent paid on time, no overdrafts, no buy-now-pay-later patterns, no gambling, no irregular cash withdrawals they can't explain.
3. Fix the spending narrative. If your 90-day statement shows three nights of Uber Eats a week, that doesn't disqualify you, but expect a question about it. The cleanest path is to clean it up now and apply 90 days later.
4. Close BNPL accounts. Afterpay, Laybuy, Zip. Even if the balance is zero. Open BNPL accounts reduce your borrowing capacity by roughly $5,000-$15,000 (illustrative, actual reduction varies by lender and account count).
5. Stabilise income. Lenders prefer 6+ months in your current role, 2+ years if self-employed. Don't change jobs in the 3 months before pre-approval if you can avoid it.
6. Check your KiwiSaver eligibility. You can withdraw KiwiSaver for a first home if you've been a member for 3+ years and the property is your first. Confirm with your provider in writing.
7. Open a separate "house" savings account. Genuine savings, ring-fenced, ideally with a high-interest sub-account. Lenders want to see a savings pattern, not a one-off deposit from a family member.

Stage 2 · Three months out · Deposit composition

Your deposit isn't one number from one place. It's a stack from up to four sources. Get the stack right and a 5%-deposit house becomes an 8%-deposit house, which can change which lender will say yes.

1. Genuine savings. Money you have saved over time (typically 3+ months minimum). Most lenders require at least 5% to be genuine savings even if your total deposit is larger.
2. KiwiSaver first home withdrawal. Every dollar except the minimum $1,000 balance, including your contributions, your employer's contributions, the government's, and any returns. The withdrawal goes directly to your solicitor's trust account, not to you.
3. First Home Grant. Now closed to new applications as of mid-2024. If you were approved before then, the grant still applies; if not, plan without it.
4. Gifted deposit. Most lenders allow gifted deposits from immediate family. The giftor must sign a "gift letter" stating it is not a loan. Some lenders require the gift to be received 90 days before settlement.
5. Vendor finance / family loan. Less common, more complex, talk to a CFP and a solicitor first.

Stage 3 · Pick the lender path

There are three doors. Pick the right one and your offer is competitive. Pick the wrong one and you waste three months.

1. Door 1: Standard 20%-deposit loan. The cleanest path. Lender of choice, best rates, fewest conditions. If you have 20% deposit, walk through this door.
2. Door 2: Kāinga Ora First Home Loan. 5% deposit minimum, no low-equity premium, capped at a regional house price (the Tauranga cap is around $875k as of late 2025, but check the current cap, it changes). Income caps apply ($95k single / $150k couple, illustrative). Only certain banks participate.
3. Door 3: Low-deposit bank loan with low-equity premium. 10-15% deposit. Bank charges a low-equity premium (LEP), usually 0.25-1.5% on top of the rate, until you reach 20% equity. Best for buyers who don't qualify for Kāinga Ora but don't want to wait.

Stage 4 · Pre-approval and search

Pre-approval in writing. Then search with confidence.

1. Submit one pre-approval application, not five. Each application leaves a credit footprint. Adviser submits to the best-fit lender first; we only go to a second if the first declines.
2. Read the conditions. Pre-approvals are conditional. Typical conditions: valuation, contract review, building report, satisfactory income evidence at draw-down. Know what's still required.
3. Know your buying band. The pre-approved amount is the ceiling. Set a working band $50-80k below it to leave room for inspection issues and settlement costs.
4. Watch the pre-approval expiry. Most pre-approvals expire after 90 days. Renewing requires a fresh income check.

Stage 5 · Offer, conditions, settlement

1. Conditional offer. Always make the offer conditional on finance, building inspection, LIM, and (if relevant) a satisfactory title and sale of your current property.
2. Building inspection. Always. Even on a new build. The $700-1,200 you spend can save you $40k of structural surprise.
3. LIM (Land Information Memorandum). Council issued. Tells you about consents, hazards, drainage. Allow 7-10 working days.
4. Solicitor's title check. Boundary disputes, easements, covenants, body-corporate health (if a unit-titled property).
5. Finance confirmation. Lender re-runs the file with the property details, valuation comes back, finance is confirmed.
6. Sign the unconditional contract. Solicitor handles. Pay the deposit (typically 10%, sometimes negotiable).
7. Settlement day. Lender draws down the loan to your solicitor. KiwiSaver funds release to your solicitor. Solicitor pays the vendor's solicitor. You collect the keys.
8. The next morning. Insurance policy effective. House insurance must be in place before settlement.

The thing every FHB underestimates

Settlement costs. Beyond the deposit you need: solicitor's fees ($1,800-3,000), building inspection ($700-1,200), LIM ($350-450), valuation ($600-900 if not bank-supplied), insurance prepayment ($1,500-3,500 annual, paid up-front), and at least $5k of buffer for moving, immediate repairs, and the first electricity bill.

Budget $10-15k beyond the deposit for these. If you have it ring-fenced, settlement is calm. If you don't, settlement is panic.

How to use this checklist with us

Print it. Tick what's done. Highlight what isn't. Email it back to us (or bring it to the 15-min) and we'll work through the highlighted bits together. The whole conversation gets 70% shorter when you've done your Stage 1 work.