Osteopath Home Loans: LMI Waivers and Eligibility

Yes. Eligible osteopaths can borrow up to 90% of the property's accepted value without LMI through Westpac or St George. That usually means a 10% deposit plus buying costs. Both require at least $90k a year in qualifying professional income and evidence of your professional status.

I'd start with your practising registration and how you earn your living. A clinic employee and a practice owner may qualify through the same profession category, but the lender needs different records from each. If you do both, we'll separate your wages from your business earnings before comparing the loans.

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 practising osteopathy registration on the Ahpra register ready. Being a student, working as an assistant or holding non-practising registration does not establish the same eligibility. If your registration is limited or conditional, I'd check the lender's requirements before you rely on a waiver.

The Osteopathy Board explains registration. Bring your qualification and current practice-status evidence, and tell us if you're returning to practice or changing clinic ownership.

The $90k minimum uses combined gross annual earnings from work in an eligible healthcare profession. A partner's unrelated wages can help with the repayment assessment, but do not fill a shortfall in that professional-income threshold.

For example, $82k from osteopathy and a partner's $25k from an unrelated job give you $107k of household earnings. You still have only $82k towards the profession test. I'd check the source of the earnings before treating a household total as enough.

If a clinic pays you a salary, start with your payslips, contract and year-to-date earnings. If you invoice patients or the clinic through an ABN, I'd look at the business costs and how you pay yourself. The amount billed for appointments is not automatically the amount available for mortgage repayments.

A growing appointment book can help explain how your practice is going. It does not replace tax returns, financial statements and current trading records. Include rent, staff costs, equipment finance and other business commitments so the comparison reflects what you can afford.

Westpac and St George can consider eligible self-employed applicants after at least 1 completed financial year, using a single year of tax returns under the applicable assessment rules. A completed financial year is different from simply having an ABN for 12 months.

The waiver cannot use Fast Track, the group's streamlined self-employed verification method. I'd check whether your business history and records fit the alternative assessment before you commit to a property. A new clinic, changed ownership or a recent jump in earnings may need more explanation.

If part of your pay depends on patient numbers, commission or extra sessions, bring the history of those payments. I'd check how much the lender accepts and whether it is likely to continue.

Osteopaths are listed for the profession LMI waiver, but are not named on Westpac or St George's public lists for the separate 100% overtime and allowance benefit. Don't assume the waiver means every dollar of extra pay will count. We need to assess that part of your pay separately.

The Westpac Group waiver has a $5m loan cap. Across Westpac, St George, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA, the combined limit for secured lending above 80% without LMI is $7.5m. Existing loans within the group count, so I'd check your total exposure before treating the two brands as separate options.

An eligible interest-only period must convert to principal and interest to use this exemption. Property size, type, location and valuation can change the available loan amount. Tell us if you're refinancing, building, buying land or using a company or trust so we can check the 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.