Home loans by occupation
Your job changes how a lender reads your income — how much of your overtime counts, whether salary packaging is grossed up, and whether you can skip lenders mortgage insurance altogether. These guides cover the policy that applies to your profession.
nurses
LMI concession availableNursing is one of the most lender-friendly occupations in Australia. Employment is stable, demand is structural, and several lenders count 100% of shift penalties and overtime rather than shading them to 80%.
Read the guideteachers
Essential-services income policyTeachers are viewed as low-risk borrowers with predictable, award-based income. The complications are usually contract status and the treatment of extra duties, not the profession itself.
Read the guidepolice officers
Essential-services income policyPolice officers sit squarely in the essential-services category. Income is stable and heavily weighted toward shift penalties and overtime — which is exactly where lender choice decides your borrowing power.
Read the guideparamedics
Essential-services income policyParamedics combine highly stable public sector employment with income that's often 25–40% penalties and overtime. The right lender counts that in full; the wrong one discounts it.
Read the guidefirefighters
Essential-services income policyFirefighters are treated as premium essential-services borrowers: secure employment, award-based pay and predictable shift patterns.
Read the guideADF members
Essential-services income policyDefence members have secure income plus a set of allowances and entitlements that many lenders simply don't know how to read. Getting them assessed correctly is the whole game.
Read the guidedoctors
LMI waiver to 90% LVRMedical professionals get the strongest concessions in Australian lending: LMI waived to 90% LVR — and in some cases 95% — plus rate discounts, on the basis of exceptionally low historical default rates.
Read the guideaccountants and lawyers
LMI concession availableQualified accountants and lawyers are on most lenders' professional lists, which unlocks LMI concessions at 85–90% LVR provided you meet membership and income criteria.
Read the guidetradies
Essential-services income policyTrades split into two very different lending stories: PAYG employees, who are straightforward, and self-employed subbies, whose approval depends entirely on how a lender reads their tax returns.
Read the guidecasual workers
Essential-services income policyCasual employment isn't a barrier — it's a documentation exercise. Once you've got continuity in one industry and a clear year-to-date figure, plenty of lenders will treat you like any other borrower.
Read the guideaged care and disability support workers
Essential-services income policyCare sector workers combine award income, heavy shift penalties and — critically — not-for-profit salary packaging, which lenders that understand the sector will gross up into assessable income.
Read the guidegig economy and contract workers
Essential-services income policyRideshare, delivery, freelance and independent contractor income is assessable — but almost always as self-employed income, which means tax returns rather than payslips.
Read the guidepilots and cabin crew
Essential-services income policyAviation income is high but unusually structured: base salary plus flying hours, per-diems, overnight and duty allowances. Lenders that understand rosters assess most of it; lenders that don't assess base only, which can halve your borrowing power.
Read the guideengineers
LMI concession availableEngineers are seen as stable, high-income professionals. The friction is rarely the profession — it's contracting, FIFO rosters and project-based bonuses.
Read the guideIT and tech workers
Essential-services income policyTech incomes are high, but a meaningful share arrives as bonuses, RSUs and contract rates — the three things lenders treat least consistently.
Read the guidesmall business owners
Essential-services income policyYour accountant's job is to minimise your taxable income; a lender's job is to assess it. Those two goals conflict, and bridging the gap is where add-backs and the right lender matter most.
Read the guidepharmacists
LMI concession availablePharmacists sit on several lenders' professional lists, and pharmacy owners are assessed as small business borrowers with sector-specific lending available.
Read the guideveterinarians
LMI concession availableVets are recognised professionals at several lenders, though the concessions are narrower than for doctors and the incomes generally lower relative to study debt.
Read the guidehospitality workers
Essential-services income policyHospitality income is genuinely assessable — the obstacles are casual employment status, penalty rates and, occasionally, income that isn't fully documented.
Read the guidepublic servants
Essential-services income policyGovernment employment is about as stable as lenders get. Classification-based pay is easy to verify, and ongoing employment is treated as low risk across the panel.
Read the guideIs your income being assessed in full?
Most borrowers lose capacity to a lender that shades their overtime or ignores salary packaging. We'll find one that doesn't.