NAB Home Loan Review 2026

If your medical or allied-health profession qualifies, you may be able to buy a home to live in with a 5% deposit and no lenders mortgage insurance. Your registration, property and application still need to meet NAB's rules. LMI protects the bank, even though you pay for it.

NAB also has a separate professional LMI waiver for other professions, including eligible IPA accountants and associate or fellow actuaries. Eligible lawyers and accountants are capped at 90%. Some government lawyers may qualify without a practising certificate if they can show they're currently practising.

Some interns, residents and registrars completing supervised training can qualify for the medical offer. No single property used as security can be worth more than $4.5m. NAB generally caps construction at 90%, and we'd confirm with NAB whether the medical waiver can be used for a build. We check your registration, membership, income and employment against the relevant offer before counting on an LMI saving.

If your latest business year is stronger than the one before it, using that year alone could make a difference to how much you can borrow. NAB may accept just your latest lodged tax return. Our self-employed home loan guide explains the other documents you may need.

This can also help if you're buying through the 5% Deposit Scheme. NAB may treat an eligible scheme-backed loan as 80% of the property value when deciding how many years of tax returns it needs. That could let you use 1 lodged year and a 5% deposit without LMI. It doesn't reduce the amount you owe or remove the normal repayment checks.

You can draw a regular wage from your company and still be treated as self-employed for a home loan. NAB may do this if you, your partner or a related trust controls the business. It can also ask more questions if you're a trustee, partner or trust beneficiary.

The loan went ahead in August 2026, taking their total lending to $800k and providing the $350k needed for the renovation.

NAB participates in the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, administered by Housing Australia. If you qualify, you may be able to buy your first home with a 5% deposit and no LMI. A qualifying single parent or legal guardian may need a 2% deposit under the Single Parent Stream. Price caps and NAB's normal approval checks still apply. Our first-home buyer guide covers the wider buying process and costs.

The deposit is only part of the cash you need. Allow for conveyancing, inspections, moving costs and any stamp duty, as well as money you want to keep aside after settlement.

NAB may also ask where your deposit came from. A gift or inheritance can form part of the cash you use to complete the purchase, but it doesn't count as genuine savings. A clean rental repayment history of at least 90 days can count if it equals 5% of the purchase price. NAB also accepts money released through the First Home Super Saver Scheme.

NAB checks the income it accepts, your debts, credit-card limits, living costs, dependants and the property. That's why two lenders can reach different borrowing amounts from the same household figures.

If you salary package through a hospital or ambulance service, NAB adds back up to $970 a month as tax-free income. For public benevolent institutions and health promotion charities, the limit is $1,545 a month. A novated lease is added back too, but the lease commitment still counts. Our nurse salary packaging guide compares how each lender treats packaging. NAB also decides how much of each type of income it can count. Some income may count in full and some only in part, and each type needs its own evidence:

NAB tests your repayments at the higher of 5.75% or 3% above the actual rate. At an actual rate of 6%, that means testing your repayments at 9%. You don't pay that test rate.

NAB can also add strata fees, private school costs, child support and some insurance costs to its normal living-expense allowance. If you're buying an apartment, the strata bill could reduce how much you can borrow compared with a house at the same income.

See APRA's normal repayment-test rules for the broader bank requirement.

An unused credit card can still reduce how much you can borrow. NAB counts 3.8% of the card or overdraft limit as a monthly commitment, even when you owe nothing. A $15k limit therefore counts as $570 a month. We'd check whether reducing a limit you don't need would help before you apply.

If you have $20k or less left on your HELP debt, NAB may agree to leave the repayment out of its borrowing calculation in limited cases. Before using your savings to clear it, compare the extra borrowing power with the cash you'd lose from your deposit. Our HECS and home loan guide explains the trade-off.

Use our borrowing power calculator as a starting point, then ask us to compare your actual figures. Different lenders can reach different answers from the same income and debts.

If you're refinancing the home you live in and fall short under NAB's normal repayment test, its Alternative Refinance Assessment may help. It's limited to principal and interest loans. NAB first checks your repayments under its normal rules and a separate refinance calculation. If you fall short under both, it may use a lower assessment buffer to check whether the refinance is affordable. It can't be used for an investment loan, a top-up, cash out or a guarantee.

If you're 55 or older, NAB treats you as approaching retirement even if you plan to keep working. The same rule can apply if you expect to retire within 10 years. Before relying on a long loan term, check how NAB expects you to repay the balance.

NAB must check the evidence and accept the plan.

Already retired? Different treatment may apply if you can repay without employment income.

NAB can lend for an investment property, but it's usually stricter than for a home you plan to live in. Even with a good salary, you can run out of borrowing room after several properties because NAB uses a lower total-debt limit for investors. See our Queensland investment loan guide for the wider planning issues.

For a new purchase, NAB starts with rent it can support from documents such as a lease, appraisal or valuation. For applications from 27 August 2026, the annual rent used is capped at 7% of the property value. NAB then counts 90% of the supported rent and separately allows for property expenses.

In practice, rental income can be reduced twice: first through the percentage NAB counts, then through a property-expense allowance. Body corporate fees may be added separately as well. That's why a high advertised yield may not improve your borrowing power as much as you expect.

Start with whether you'll use an offset, then compare the rate and ongoing fees. You can also split the loan if you want a fixed rate for part of your borrowing.

With NAB's Tailored Variable loan, the combined balance across your linked offset accounts reduces the balance used to calculate interest. Splitting the same savings across several accounts helps you organise your money. It doesn't change the interest you save.

If you like giving your money jobs, NAB’s Tailored Variable loan lets you link up to 10 offset accounts. Bills can sit in one, money for bigger expenses in another. Base Variable and fixed loans don’t have an offset at all, so decide this before you pick the product. Our multiple offset accounts comparison shows how NAB’s limit and fees stack up against other banks.

There are 2 account rules to know. Everyone named on the account has to be a borrower on the loan, so an account you share with someone who isn’t on the loan won’t qualify. And each account can only offset 1 home loan. If you’ve got more than one loan, check which loan each account is linked to so the savings come off the right one.

These are the main fees to allow for when comparing NAB home loans.

The $12 monthly Tailored fee adds up to $144 a year. Base Variable has no monthly loan service fee. If you already have a Choice Package, allow for its $395 annual package fee.

Your contract confirms the fees that apply. Allow for any valuation, government and legal charges as well. We compare the rate for your loan size, deposit and purpose, then work out whether the offset and other features justify the cost.

Interest-only repayments can give you some breathing room, but the loan balance doesn't fall during that period. NAB caps total interest-only periods at 5 years for a home you live in and 10 years for an investment loan. NAB checks whether you can afford the higher principal and interest repayments over the shorter term left afterwards.

Having your documents ready helps, but timing also depends on the valuation and any extra checks NAB needs. A business structure or unusual property can lead to more questions before you receive a final answer.

These are review estimates once NAB has the required documents. Formal approval and settlement can take longer. We'll check the current timing against your contract and settlement dates before you apply.

NAB's conditional pre-approval certificate is valid for 90 days. Your finances still need to meet its requirements, and NAB must accept the property and valuation. If it expires before you buy, you may need to reapply.

Ask NAB to review your existing rate before you decide to refinance. A better offer from NAB could save you the cost and paperwork of switching, but it still needs to stack up against the alternatives.

Selling, refinancing or paying off your NAB loan? Our NAB discharge guide explains how to start, what to have ready and how long to allow.

We compare your current NAB loan with more than 30 lenders, ask NAB to review its rate and calculate how long any switching costs would take to recover. If staying puts you in a better position, we'll tell you. Read our refinancing guide or ask us to review your NAB loan.

NAB's Advantedge business backed Connective Essentials. Advantedge closed to new applications on 30 September 2025, with existing loans moving to NAB Tailored Home Loans on 17 October 2026. Our Connective Home Loans review explains the distinction between that older product and the current Connective range.

For existing Advantedge borrowers, variable rates rose by 0.25% on 17 October 2026. Your updated rate and repayment have been available through NAB since 19 October. Our Advantedge migration guide explains payment dates, offset setup, servicing deadlines and where to send construction requests.

A pre-approval is mainly a check of your finances. NAB must still accept the property, valuation and loan amount. Send us the address early, especially for an apartment, acreage or construction project, so you know what needs checking before you commit.

NAB generally wants a residential property to be at least 50 square metres when balconies and car parking are included, or at least 40 square metres when they're excluded. A smaller property won't work if it's a serviced apartment or part of what NAB considers a speculative development.

A serviced apartment may work if permanent residential use is legally allowed, it can be removed from the letting agreement within 4 months, and it can be sold separately in the normal residential market. NAB will want to see the management agreement.

NAB can also treat your purchase differently if you hold 4 or more homes in one development, or land that will become 4 or more lots.

Vacant residential land can work if it isn't part of a speculative development. Rural or acreage property usually needs to be mainly a home, have suitable power and water, sit within NAB's location limits and meet its land-size rules.

See our guide to rural property home loans.

NAB's standard land-size limit is less than 10 hectares, or less than 2.2 hectares when there's no dwelling. NAB may look at some larger properties individually. We'd check the address before you sign.

NAB wants a fully signed, fixed-price building contract with an independent builder. It won't fund owner-builder construction, cost-plus contracts, relocatable or kit homes, or some split and simple-works contracts.

If you're building, send the contract and progress-payment schedule to us before the loan is lodged. Our construction finance guide explains how the payments work.

NAB's bridging option is generally for existing NAB home-loan customers. If you're new to NAB and need to buy before you sell, compare bridging lenders early.

If you're on an accepted temporary visa and live in Australia, NAB generally limits borrowing to 70% of the property's value. That also applies if you're applying with an Australian citizen. We'll check NAB's current visa requirements before you apply.

NAB also says its home loans aren't available if you need Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval to buy residential property. An accepted visa alone doesn't confirm eligibility.

Hunter Galloway only helps clients living in Australia.

NAB may lend to some companies and trusts. When every borrower is a company or trustee, the loan is generally capped at 80% and cash out isn't available. NAB doesn't offer SMSF home loans.

NAB may ask for extra evidence to confirm the value and how the sale was arranged. Tell us about the relationship and transaction before the contract is finalised so we can check what the bank will need.

There's no published NAB credit score that guarantees approval. The bank looks at missed repayments, recent applications, defaults, hardship arrangements and how you've managed your accounts. Tell us about an old issue early so we can check the dates and explain what happened.

If you want to borrow extra against your home, NAB will ask what the money is for. It may need quotes, invoices or other evidence even where there's no single published dollar cap. Some purposes aren't accepted. Adding other debts to the home loan can also change the assessment and increase the total interest if you repay them over a longer term.

Use your situation to narrow the shortlist. Then compare the borrowing amount, cash needed, repayments and fees using the same property and loan amount.

Compare our CommBank review, Bankwest review and Macquarie review for the alternatives mentioned above.

The lender pays us commission, which we disclose before you proceed. Hunter Galloway is independently owned and isn't owned by NAB or another bank, and most major lenders we use pay broadly similar commission.

We compare more than 30 lenders and must put your interests first. Our Brisbane mortgage brokers can compare NAB with other lenders based on your income, deposit and the home you want to buy. Read how we review lenders and ASIC's guidance on the mortgage broker duty to put clients first.

Client examples are based on real situations. Names and identifying details have been changed.