Occupational Therapist Home Loans: LMI Waivers and Income

Yes. Westpac and St George offer eligible occupational therapists loans up to 90% of the property's accepted value without LMI. You'll need 10% towards the price when the valuation matches it, plus buying costs, and at least $90k a year in qualifying professional income.

I'd start with how you work and how much cash you want to keep after buying. Your hospital salary, a second employer and private-practice income may be assessed differently. A waiver can reduce your upfront costs, but the repayments still need to fit your budget.

Our LMI Waivers guide explains the broader options. Use the deposit calculator and LMI calculator to start your buying budget.

Say you're buying a $900k home with $120k saved. The bank values it at $900k. For this comparison, buying costs are $25k and the standard 90% loan has a $17k LMI premium paid upfront. These are planning assumptions, not a quote: your actual premium and costs depend on the lender, property and location.

The no-LMI option avoids the $17k premium used in this example and leaves $5k after buying. It still means borrowing $90k more than you would with a 20% deposit. I'd check whether the repayments and that remaining cash buffer are comfortable for you.

Replace the $25k allowance with your own costs: stamp duty after concessions, conveyancing, transfer and mortgage registration, inspections and lender fees. Allow for moving and unexpected bills too. If you add LMI to a standard loan instead of paying upfront, the debt increases, interest applies to the premium and you must stay within the lender's loan limit.

A lower valuation changes the answer. If the same home is valued at $880k, a 90% loan is $792k. You need $108k towards the price plus the assumed $25k costs. That leaves a $13k shortfall from your $120k savings, so I'd check the valuation before relying on the deposit figure.

Have your current Ahpra registration and evidence of your OT work ready. Your role must fit the lender's eligible profession list. An assistant role or a student placement does not establish eligibility for an occupational therapist waiver.

If your registration is limited, conditional or non-practising, I'd check it with the lender before you rely on the waiver. Ahpra's professions and registers include occupational therapy. Physiotherapists have a separate guide.

Westpac and St George's $90k test uses combined gross annual income from work in an eligible healthcare profession. A partner's unrelated wages do not fill a shortfall in that professional income.

For example, $82k from OT work plus a partner's $25k from an unrelated job gives you $107k of household income, but only $82k of qualifying professional income. Their earnings may still help cover the proposed repayments. I'd separate these two checks before working out your options.

If you work for two employers, bring the records for both roles. If you also invoice private clients, keep that business income separate from your wages. The lender needs to understand the hours, history and costs behind each amount.

For private-practice work, money invoiced to clients is not automatically the income available for a mortgage. I'd look at business expenses and commitments, what you actually receive, and whether recent trading supports the income in your tax records.

Westpac and St George name occupational therapists for possible 100% assessment of overtime and allowances. Bring a history of the extra pay so the lender can assess it, rather than relying on one busy pay period.

St George excludes self-employed applicants from this treatment and normally needs at least 6 months of income evidence with the same employer; shorter histories can be referred. This affects how much you may be able to borrow. Qualifying for the LMI waiver does not automatically mean all your extra pay will count.

If your hospital salary is packaged, bring the breakdown of your cash pay, benefits and deductions. I'd check what the lender accepts instead of treating every packaged dollar as extra income. Include any novated lease or other commitment.

Tell us about probation, a recent move to contracting, reduced hours or upcoming leave. These can change the income the lender uses and the repayments you want to take on.

Westpac and St George share the same banking group. The broker-policy material used for this guide records a $5m maximum loan and $7.5m in combined lending across the group for these waivers. If you already have loans with the group, I'd check that total before choosing a lender.

These are starting points. Property size, type, location and the value accepted by the lender can reduce the amount available. Tell us if you're refinancing, building, buying through a company or trust, or seeking interest-only repayments so we can check that exact structure.

A waived premium does not guarantee the lowest overall cost. I'd compare the actual rate, repayments, offset or redraw features, annual fees and any refinancing or fixed-rate break costs. The right comparison is the cost over the time you expect to keep the loan.

This separate scheme may let you buy with 5% plus costs and no LMI. You must be at least 18, an Australian citizen or permanent resident, and a first home buyer or someone who has not owned property or land in Australia in the last 10 years.

You must live in the home, meet the location's property-price cap and use a participating lender's eligible principal-and-interest loan. There is no scheme income cap, but the lender still checks that you can afford the mortgage and may require more than the minimum deposit.

On the same $900k purchase and valuation, a 5% contribution is $45k and the loan is $855k. With $120k saved and the same assumed $25k costs, you'd have $50k left. That keeps $45k more cash than the 90% no-LMI option but adds $45k to your debt. This only works if you, the loan and the property meet the scheme rules. Our 5% Deposit Scheme guide explains them.

If the $90k profession threshold is the issue, a general no-LMI product may still fit. It has its own income and property requirements. Compare the general 90% no-LMI options rather than assuming another profession's waiver applies to you.

A family guarantee may help with the deposit, but it puts the guarantor's property at risk for the amount guaranteed. I'd explain that obligation and the conditions for releasing the guarantee before anyone agrees to it.

Saving a larger deposit or paying LMI may also be worth comparing if the alternative loan has lower ongoing costs or better suits your circumstances.

Lenders pay us upfront and ongoing commissions when we arrange eligible loans. The initial assessment is free. If we charge a fee for helping with your application, we'll explain it before you proceed. Lender and other third-party costs may still apply. Read how we review lenders.