Services / First home buyer
There isn't one right first-home-buyer route. There are three — the First Home Guarantee, LMI capitalised, and family-pledge guarantor — and each one has a different dollar answer depending on your price point, deposit, and whether parental equity is available. The right route is a structural decision; the calculators below quantify the cheapest of the three on your specific numbers.
Each addresses one of the three routes: LMI break-even quantifies the capitalised-LMI route, borrowing capacity surfaces which lender writes your file at the route you choose, and the stamp duty calculator handles the QLD concession cliff at the $700k mark.
LMI break-even → Borrowing capacity → Stamp duty →On a $700,000 purchase the cheapest route is the FHBG by ~$8,000 over LMI capitalised and ~$3,000 over a family-pledge guarantor structure. The FHBG eliminates ~$25,000 of LMI premium, the QLD stamp duty concession exempts another ~$17,000, and the participating-lender shortlist still contains lenders writing competitive rates (Macquarie, ING, Bankwest, Suncorp).
On a $920,000 purchase — the Gold Coast median house (Domain Q1 2026) — the FHBG is structurally out (over the $700k QLD cap) and the QLD stamp duty concession scales to zero by $800k. The decision becomes LMI capitalised (~$26,000 premium, full panel access) versus family-pledge guarantor (no LMI, panel restricted to lenders with clean guarantor structures). The right route turns on whether parental equity is available and acceptable to the family. If it is, guarantor wins by ~$22,000. If it isn't, LMI is the only door.
Same borrower, same property, same income — three routes through the lender panel. The dollar math below is on a representative $700,000 owner-occupier purchase with a 5% saved deposit ($35,000), eligible single-FHB at $125,000 income, in QLD. The LMI break-even calculator runs the equivalent comparison on your actual numbers.
Route A · FHBG-eligible
5% deposit, no LMI, federal scheme. ~28 participating lenders. Best fit when the purchase sits at or under the QLD $700,000 price cap and the borrower meets income caps.
Route B · LMI capitalised
5% deposit, LMI premium capitalised into the loan. Full panel access. Best fit when purchase is above the FHBG cap, or when the borrower doesn't qualify for the scheme.
Route C · Family-pledge
Parent's existing property equity covers the 20% deposit shortfall. Loan written at effective 80% LVR — no LMI. Guarantee released when borrower's balance reaches 80% of property value (typically 4-8 years).
The math above is illustrative on a representative file — the LMI break-even calculator runs the same comparison against your actual deposit, income, purchase price and expected hold period. The order in which routes win flips depending on the inputs — at higher LVRs Route B's LMI premium grows faster than Route C's guarantor legal cost; at lower LVRs the gap narrows.
Three concessions stack for QLD first home buyers. Each has its own eligibility test; some are mutually exclusive; the order in which you check them matters because locking a contract before confirming eligibility is the most common expensive FHB mistake.
$700k cap (QLD) · 5% deposit · no LMI
Government acts as guarantor on the 15% deposit shortfall. 35,000 places/year nationally, allocated to ~28 participating lenders. Income caps: $125k single, $200k joint. Existing and new homes. Off-the-plan apartments under a minimum size threshold are knock-outs at many participating lenders.
$30k grant · new builds only · contract under $750k
Queensland First Home Owner Grant. $30,000 to first home buyers purchasing or building a new home (never been occupied) with a contract under $750,000. Stackable with FHBG but the property has to satisfy both schemes' rules. Existing homes are NOT eligible.
Full exempt under $700k · scaled $700-$800k · zero above
Eligible QLD first home buyers pay zero transfer duty under $700,000; relief reduces to zero by $800,000. On $700k the saving versus standard duty is ~$17,350; on $720k it's ~$12,000; on $799,999 it's a few hundred dollars.
The FHBG cap and the QLD full-exemption cap are the same number ($700,000). Crossing that line costs the borrower both schemes at once — typically $17k of stamp duty back AND ~$25k of LMI (no FHBG above the cap). The cliff is steep enough that the practical FHB price band in QLD sits at $680-$700k for many buyers, not above. The four files below show the cliff in numbers:
| Purchase price | Stamp duty | LMI required? | Combined gov+credit cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| $680,000 | $0 | No (FHBG) | ~$0 |
| $700,000 | $0 | No (FHBG) | ~$0 |
| $720,000 | ~$5,350 | Yes (~$26k) | ~$31,350 |
| $800,000 | ~$21,850 | Yes (~$29k) | ~$50,850 |
Each route has a different lender panel. The names below are the panel members I see win most often for first-home-buyer files in May 2026. The individual lender pages cover the specific policy levers per lender.
Route A (FHBG) — first-choice participating lenders:
Route B (LMI capitalised, 95-98% LVR) — strongest doors:
Route C (family-pledge guarantor) — cleanest legal docs:
Both are recoverable but cost real money or real time. Both happen because the routes get chosen by default rather than deliberately.
The LMI break-even calculator takes your purchase price, deposit, expected hold period and growth assumption and runs the three-route comparison automatically — Route A vs B vs C, dollar-quantified, with the winning route called out. Pair it with the borrowing-capacity calculator for the lender shortlist.
Run LMI break-even → Run borrowing capacity →What is the First Home Guarantee in 2026?
Federal scheme allowing eligible FHBs to purchase with 5% deposit and no LMI. Government guarantees the 15% shortfall. QLD cap $700k. 35,000 places/year allocated to participating lenders. Income caps: $125k single / $200k joint.
How much can I save with the FHBG vs paying LMI?
On a $700k purchase at 95% LVR, LMI capitalised is ~$24-27k. FHBG eliminates that. Net direct saving ~$25k plus ~$30-40k of compounded interest avoided. Trade-off: panel restriction to participating lenders.
Can I use the FHBG above the price cap?
No. QLD cap is $700k. Gold Coast median house is $920k — FHBG out for most GC houses. Alternatives: LMI capitalised ($20-30k premium, full panel), family-pledge guarantor (no LMI, panel restricted), save more deposit (17-24 months). LMI break-even calculator quantifies which is cheapest.
What is a family-pledge guarantor home loan?
Parent's existing property equity covers deposit shortfall. Lender writes loan at effective 80% LVR — no LMI. Pledge released when borrower's balance reaches 80% of purchase property value (4-8 years). Available at CBA, Westpac, BoM, Macquarie, ING, Bankwest, Suncorp. Heavier legal docs; real relationship complexity; $20-30k LMI saving plus compounded interest.
What's the QLD stamp duty concession?
Full exempt under $700k; scaled relief $700-$800k; zero above. Creates a cliff at the FHBG cap — the structural reason QLD FHB price band sits at $680-$700k for many buyers.
Which lenders are best for first home buyers?
Depends on the route. Route A (FHBG): Macquarie, ING, Bankwest, Suncorp sharpest. Route B (LMI capitalised): Bankwest 98% LVR with gift funds. Route C (guarantor): CBA, Westpac, BoM for clean legal docs.