PRACTICAL GUIDE
Buying a property: budget beyond the deposit
The deposit is one part of the cash required. Add transaction costs and consider ongoing loan and property expenses before deciding whether a purchase fits your budget.
Published 2026-10-23 · LANDICATION · Educational content
Separate three budgets
First, estimate the cash needed to settle: the part of the price not funded by the loan, plus purchase costs paid upfront. Second, estimate the regular loan and ownership outgoings. Third, retain a reserve appropriate to your circumstances for unexpected costs.
A contract deposit paid before settlement is normally part of the money applied to the purchase price. Do not count it twice as both an extra fee and part of your purchase contribution.
Check each purchase-cost item
In Property Planner, review the individual cost fields rather than treating a default as a quote. Transfer duty depends on the property jurisdiction and purchaser circumstances. Check any exemption, concession, surcharge or grant against the responsible revenue authority; eligibility cannot be inferred from the property price alone.
- Transfer duty and relevant title or registration charges.
- Legal and conveyancing work, searches and certificates.
- Inspection costs and any required specialist investigation.
- Settlement platform fees and lender application or valuation fees.
- Any applicable lenders mortgage insurance and how it is paid.
- Other agreed adjustments or purchase costs, with duplicate items removed.
Check the loan and the ongoing costs
Loan size, interest rate, term and repayment type affect the repayment estimate. Check whether a figure is an editable assumption, a lender rate reference or your own approved terms. A borrowing estimate is not approval.
Budget for council rates, owner-paid water, insurance, strata where applicable and maintenance. For an investment, add vacancy and property management. Actual principal-and-interest repayments include principal, while interest-only payments do not.
Build a useful comparison
Use the same financing assumptions across properties when you want to isolate property differences. Then vary the assumptions you need to investigate. Keep an explicit zero only when that cost is genuinely zero; an unknown amount should remain unknown.
Property Planner supports purchase, finance and holding-cost scenarios. Review its input labels and current membership limits before comparing or exporting. The worked purchase example shows why the cheaper asking price can still require more cash.
Further checks
The official resources below can help you check current requirements. Links checked 2026-10-23.
Information is general and does not take account of your circumstances. Confirm current requirements, costs and site-specific issues with the responsible authority or appropriate adviser.
Continue with Property Planner.
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