For doctors and medical professionals
Doctor home loans: 5% down and no LMI, and which lenders allow it
Years of training can leave a doctor with a good income and a deposit that hasn't caught up. Westpac Group, ANZ and NAB allow a doctor to borrow up to 95% of a home's price with no lenders mortgage insurance (LMI), and CommBank, Suncorp and Bankwest go to about 90% (Bankwest on loans up to $2 million). Each lender writes its own list of who qualifies, from interns to specialists, and its own limits. On a $1,000,000 home, LMI at 95% would be about $43,500 on one insurer's standard rates, and a waiver removes it.
95% the most a doctor can borrow with no LMI for a home, at Westpac Group, ANZ (debts under 6 times income) and NAB [1]
$43,510 of LMI on a 95% loan for a $1,000,000 home, the cost the waiver removes [4]
6 of 11 lender groups we checked name doctors in an LMI waiver [1][2][3]
The doctor home loan guide
Twenty-seven questions doctors ask before they buy, answered from each lender's own policy and the government's own pages, with the date we checked each one.
What is a doctor home loan, and how does it work?
A doctor home loan is an ordinary home loan with one difference: the lender waives lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) because it treats your profession as low risk. LMI is a one-off insurance the lender takes out, and you pay for, when you borrow more than 80% of the property's price. That 80% is the LVR, the loan as a share of the property's price.
So a doctor can buy with a 5% or 10% deposit and skip a cost that runs to tens of thousands of dollars on a 95% loan (part 8). The rate, the repayments and the credit checks are the same kind as any other home loan.
There's no single "doctor loan" in Australia. The term "physician loan" comes from the United States; here, the same idea is each lender's professional LMI waiver, sometimes called a medico package. Each lender writes its own list of who qualifies, how far it lends and on what terms, and the lists don't agree. That's why this guide compares them side by side.
Which banks waive LMI for doctors?
Six of the eleven lender groups Money Brain checked name doctors in an LMI waiver: three go to 95% and three to about 90%. A seventh, Bank First, waives LMI for healthcare workers buying a first home.
| Lender | Waives LMI for doctors? | Who and on what terms |
|---|---|---|
| Westpac, St.George, Bank of Melbourne, BankSA | Yes, to 95% | GPs, hospital doctors (interns, residents and registrars named), specialists and dentists. Principal and interest. No minimum income. Loans up to $5 million. |
| ANZ | Yes, to 95% | Medical and dental practitioners and AHPRA specialists, with general or specialist registration. Principal and interest for a home. 90% if your debts are 6 times your income or more. No bridging loans or family guarantees. |
| NAB | Yes, to 95% for a home | GPs, surgeons, specialists and dentists (not hygienists), registered with AHPRA, with your main income from the profession. 90% for an investment. Any one property up to $4.5 million. |
| CommBank | Yes, to 89.99% | The professions its list names, with interns, residents and registrars in those fields included. Comes with its medical package. Principal and interest. 94.99% for an investment purchase. |
| Bankwest | Yes, to 89.99% | More than 40 specialities, GP interns and residents included. 89.99% on loans up to $2 million, 84.99% up to $3 million. Principal and interest. |
| Suncorp | Yes, to 90% | Medical practitioners only. New lending from $250,000, total up to $1.5 million. Principal and interest; no interest-only, construction, bridging or pre-approval. |
| Bank First | First home only, to 90% | Healthcare workers buying their first home. Loans up to $800,000. Not for building. |
| Macquarie | No | It has withdrawn its professional and medical waiver. |
| ING, AMP | No | LMI applies above 80%. |
| Teachers Mutual Bank group, including Health Professionals Bank | No | No professional waiver; LMI applies above 80%. |
Every lender in the table still runs its normal credit tests: the waiver removes LMI, not the assessment. Health Professionals Bank is one of the Teachers Mutual Bank group's four brands, which share one policy book, so its name is a membership definition, not a waiver.
What this means for you: six lenders name doctors, so the choice is real. They differ on the things that decide your case: whether they name your stage of training, how far they lend, how big a loan they cover and whether you can go interest-only. The next parts take those one at a time.
Does Westpac, CommBank, ANZ or NAB waive LMI for doctors?
Each bank's medico home loan, in the lines that set it apart:
Westpac Group (Westpac, St.George, Bank of Melbourne, BankSA): yes, to 95% under its first medical group, with no minimum income and loans up to $5 million. Its total medical lending above 80% without LMI is capped at $7.5 million [1].
CommBank: yes, to 89.99% for a home and 94.99% for an investment purchase, and only with its medical package. Its list names about 45 professions, mostly medical specialities. It names radiologists, for example, and says that doesn't include radiographers [1].
ANZ: yes, to 95% for a home where your debts are under 6 times your income, and 90% at 6 times or more. It needs general or specialist AHPRA registration and sets no minimum income on its professional waivers [1].
NAB: yes, to 95% for a home and 90% for an investment, where your main income comes from the profession. Any one property can be worth up to $4.5 million, and your NAB consumer lending in total up to $7.0 million [1].
Bankwest: yes, to 89.99% on loans up to $2 million, for more than 40 specialities. The loan must be in your own name, not a company's or a trust's [1].
Suncorp: yes, to 90%, for medical practitioners only. It doesn't apply to refinancing a loan you already have with Suncorp, and every borrower must be an individual and an Australian resident [1].
Macquarie, ING and AMP don't waive LMI for doctors, so above 80% you pay it there [2].
Can a doctor borrow 95% with no LMI?
Yes, a doctor can borrow 95% of a home's price with no LMI at three lenders: Westpac Group, ANZ and NAB [1]. That means a 5% deposit, plus stamp duty and costs from your own savings.
The three set different conditions. Westpac Group's 95% is for principal-and-interest loans up to $5 million, with no minimum income. ANZ's 95% holds while your total debts stay under 6 times your income; at 6 times or more it drops to 90%. NAB's 95% is for a home to live in, on a property worth up to $4.5 million [1].
CommBank, Bankwest and Suncorp stop at about 90% for a home, so a doctor with them needs a 10% deposit. The highest any of these waivers goes is 95%; none removes the deposit altogether.
Who qualifies for a doctor home loan? Which specialities count
Every lender's list is its own, and the line falls in a different place at each one.
GPs and specialists: within the scope of all six lenders that waive LMI for doctors, though each words its list differently [1].
Suncorp: medical practitioners only, by AHPRA's definition. Dentists, physios and other health professions aren't eligible there [1].
CommBank: a closed list of named professions, about 45, mostly medical specialities, each needing AHPRA registration (vets need their state board). If your field isn't on the list, that waiver doesn't apply to you [1].
Bankwest: more than 40 specialities, including GP interns and residents, dentists, optometrists, pharmacists and vets [1].
ANZ: medical practitioners, dental practitioners and AHPRA specialists in its first group, at 95% [1].
Westpac Group and NAB, both to 95%: Westpac Group names GPs, hospital doctors, specialists and dentists; NAB names GPs, surgeons, specialists and dentists other than hygienists [1].
Can interns and registrars get a home loan with no LMI?
Yes, interns and registrars can get a home loan with no LMI, and this is where the lenders split most. Westpac Group's medical group names interns, residents and registrars beside GPs and specialists, lends to 95% and sets no minimum income, so a junior doctor's salary isn't held against the waiver [1].
CommBank's list includes interns, residents, registrars and supervised doctors in the fields it names, to 89.99% [1]. Bankwest names GP interns and residents, to 89.99% on loans up to $2 million [1]. ANZ asks for general or specialist registration. NAB and Suncorp don't name junior doctors, so it comes down to how each reads your registration [1].
Is there a minimum income? Not at Westpac Group's first medical group, and not on ANZ's professional waivers [1]. The waiver still doesn't settle the borrowing: every lender tests whether your pay carries the loan (part 19), which is where a junior doctor's overtime and allowances can matter (part 13).
Do dentists, pharmacists, physios and vets get the same waiver as doctors?
Dentists mostly do; pharmacists, physios and vets get a narrower answer. Westpac Group, ANZ and NAB take dentists to 95%, and CommBank and Bankwest cover them too. NAB leaves out dental hygienists, and Suncorp leaves out dentists altogether [1]. See dentist home loans.
Pharmacists are often told they qualify like doctors. NAB lists them in its medical group, at 95% for a home. Westpac Group puts them in its second group, at 90% with $90,000 of income from the qualification. Bankwest names them, to 89.99% on loans up to $2 million. CommBank asks for $100,000 gross. ANZ's medical groups don't name pharmacists [1]. See pharmacist home loans.
Physios, optometrists, chiropractors and vets get 90% at ANZ. Westpac Group takes physios, psychologists, optometrists and vets to 90% with the same $90,000 floor. NAB lists chiropractors, optometrists, physios and vets with its doctors, to 95% for a home. CommBank and Bankwest leave out physios and psychologists [1]. See physiotherapist home loans, psychologist home loans and vet home loans.
What does the doctor LMI waiver save, in dollars?
Here's what LMI would cost without a waiver, from one insurer's published rate card at its standard rates [4]. With a doctor's waiver, that cost is gone.
| Home price | Loan at 90% | LMI at 90%, about | Loan at 95% | LMI at 95%, about |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $800,000 | $720,000 | $19,296 | $760,000 | $34,808 |
| $1,000,000 | $900,000 | $24,120 | $950,000 | $43,510 |
| $1,200,000 | $1,080,000 | $31,860 | $1,140,000 | $57,456 |
| $1,500,000 | $1,350,000 | $39,825 | $1,425,000 | $71,820 |
These are illustrations from one rate card, not quotes. Your premium depends on the insurer, the loan and the lender.
What this means for you: the jump from 90% to 95% lifts the LMI by about 80% on these figures, so the 95% lenders are worth most to a doctor with a small deposit. The waiver only helps if the lender suits you otherwise, though. A lender that counts more of your pay or fits your plans better can be worth more over the life of the loan.
How large a loan will a doctor's LMI waiver cover?
Each lender caps the loan its doctor waiver covers, and the caps differ widely. A specialist buying a $3 million home has fewer lenders to choose from than a registrar buying at $900,000.
| Lender | Highest LVR | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Westpac Group | 95% | Loans up to $5 million; total lending above 80% without LMI up to $7.5 million |
| ANZ | 95% | Loans up to $4.5 million ($4.75 million at 95%) on a house worth up to $5 million; $3.6 million ($3.8 million) on other property; $8 million in total |
| NAB | 95% home, 90% investment | Any one property up to $4.5 million; all your NAB consumer lending up to $7.0 million |
| Bankwest | 89.99%, then 84.99% | 89.99% on loans up to $2 million; 84.99% up to $3 million |
| Suncorp | 90% | New lending from $250,000; total lending up to $1.5 million |
| CommBank | 89.99% home, 94.99% investment | No loan limit in the medical terms Money Brain holds |
What this means for you: above about $2 million, the list shortens. Bankwest's 89.99% stops at a $2 million loan (84.99% up to $3 million), Suncorp's waiver at $1.5 million of total lending, and NAB's at a $4.5 million property. For a bigger purchase, the larger caps at Westpac Group and ANZ are the ones that matter.
Can a doctor's LMI waiver loan be interest-only?
At several of these lenders, a doctor's LMI waiver loan has to be principal and interest. CommBank, Bankwest and Suncorp take principal-and-interest loans only, and Suncorp rules out interest-only by name [1].
Westpac Group's waiver is written for principal and interest, but it allows an interest-only period that converts to principal and interest at the same limits, 95% for doctors [1]. ANZ's 95% for a home is principal and interest; for an investment, it goes to 95% on interest-only too, where your debts are under 6 times your income [1]. NAB's terms we hold don't set the repayment type. See interest only vs principal and interest.
Do doctors get a cheaper home loan rate?
The doctor waivers Money Brain holds set the deposit, the limits and who qualifies. None of the six sets an interest rate for doctors, so this page doesn't print one [1].
A rate is priced loan by loan, so the useful comparison is the total cost of the loan, LMI included, at each lender that takes you. Weigh the rate against the LMI saved in part 8.
How do lenders assess a doctor's income?
Lenders assess a doctor's income the same way they assess anyone's: what you earn, what you owe and what you spend. The waiver settles the deposit, not the borrowing. A salaried hospital doctor's payslip is the simplest case.
Some lenders tie the waiver to where the income comes from. NAB wants your main income to come from the profession, and Westpac Group's second group counts only income from the eligible qualification [1]. Registration matters too: ANZ, NAB and Suncorp tie their waivers to AHPRA registration [1].
The next parts cover the pay that varies, overtime, allowances and salary packaging, then locums, practice owners and new starters.
Do lenders count a hospital doctor's overtime and allowances?
NAB and ANZ count 80% of a doctor's overtime. Some lenders treat essential-service work differently, and Westpac Group's emergency services policy covers hospital-employed doctors, so ask us how it applies to your pay [5].
| Lender | Overtime counted | History they want |
|---|---|---|
| Westpac Group | Its emergency services policy covers hospital-employed doctors; ask us how it applies to your pay | Set by that policy; ask us |
| NAB | 80% (its 100% rule is for nurses and midwives) | Average of the last 180 days |
| ANZ | 80% | 3 months (full or part time) |
What this means for you: for a registrar whose rostered overtime is a large share of pay, the lender can change the borrowing more than the rate does. At 80%, $30,000 of overtime counts as $24,000; a lender that counts a higher share counts more.
Allowances follow similar lines. ANZ counts ongoing allowances in full, but not higher-duties pay or one-off payments. NAB counts recurring allowances in full from two payslips in a row. Westpac Group's emergency services policy covers hospital-employed doctors; ask us how it applies to your allowances [5].
Does salary packaging help a hospital doctor borrow more?
Salary packaging can help a hospital doctor borrow more, at the lenders that count the tax-free part as income. Staff of public and not-for-profit hospitals, and of public ambulance services, can package up to $17,000 a year without fringe benefits tax; at public benevolent institutions and health promotion charities the cap is $30,000. Both are grossed-up amounts, per employee [6].
Packaged pay is tax-free, so the same pay can leave more to repay a loan with. Lenders don't all treat it the same way:
| Lender | How packaging is counted |
|---|---|
| NAB | Added back as tax-free income, up to $970 a month, for employees of tax-exempt employers |
| Westpac Group | Added back in full |
| ANZ | Added back untaxed, on top of taxable income |
| AMP | Counted only with an employer letter confirming it can be taken as cash |
What this means for you: two doctors on the same hospital pay can get different borrowing answers because one lender counts their packaging as tax-free income and another needs paperwork first. Bring your packaging statement with your payslips.
Can a locum or casual doctor get a home loan?
Yes, a locum or casual doctor can get a home loan, once the lender's minimum time in the job is met. These rules are for casual employees paid through payroll:
Westpac Group: counts casual pay in full after 6 months continuous with the same employer or agency, spread over 52 weeks [5].
NAB: averages the last 180 days, penalty rates included, with overtime split out at 80% [5].
Bankwest, ING: want 6 months in the current job [5].
Macquarie: wants 6 months in the job, or the past 6 months in the same field [5].
ANZ: wants 6 months employed, with gaps under 28 days allowed. With LMI, a casual can't be the only or main earner on the loan [5].
AMP: wants 6 months with the employer and 12 months in the same industry and role [5].
A locum who invoices through their own business is usually assessed as self-employed instead (next part).
Can a self-employed doctor or practice owner get the waiver?
A self-employed doctor or practice owner can still fit a lender's doctor waiver, because the waivers are written around your profession and registration, not your employer. What changes is how the income is proved. If you own or share a practice, or bill as a contractor, most lenders read you as self-employed and ask for tax returns and financial statements.
NAB's condition that your main income comes from the profession applies however you're paid [1]. Bankwest's waiver needs the loan in your own name, so a practice structure that buys through a company or trust won't fit it there [1]. See self-employed home loans.
Can I get a home loan just after starting at a new hospital?
You can get a home loan soon after starting at a new hospital, but lenders want to see you've started and been paid. At Westpac, a loan without mortgage insurance needs you to have started and received at least one pay. A mortgage-insured loan needs 3 months in the job, or less than that with 12 months in the same occupation and no gap of more than 2 months between jobs [5].
A new base salary is shown by the employer's letter, email or contract and one payslip at the new rate [5]. If a rotation moves you to a new employer, the time-in-job tests for overtime and allowances can start again (part 13).
Can a doctor buy a home on parental leave?
A doctor can buy a home on parental leave. Westpac can use your return-to-work pay, base pay only, with a letter from your employer giving your return date, your hours and your pay. Every child counts as a dependant, including one not yet born [5].
If your first repayment falls before you return, you'll need savings that cover the gap, on top of the money for the purchase. With a mortgage-insured loan in that case, Westpac won't lend for an investment [5].
How much can a doctor borrow?
How much a doctor can borrow comes down to three things: what a lender counts of your pay, your debts and your living costs. Banks then check you could still make the repayments if rates were 3 percentage points higher, the buffer APRA expects [9].
A second limit matters for doctors with large loans. APRA now caps loans to people whose debts are 6 or more times their income at 20% of each bank's new home lending [9]. ANZ's doctor waiver uses the same line: 95% under 6 times, 90% at 6 or more. CommBank's 94.99% investment loan needs your debts at 6 times your income or less [1].
That's why the same doctor can get quite different answers from two lenders. See how much can I borrow.
Doctor buying a first home: the waiver, the 5% Deposit Scheme or Help to Buy?
A doctor buying a first home has four ways in with less than 20%, and the right one depends on the price, the savings and the pay. The doctor waivers on this page set no maximum income in the terms we hold, and the 95% lenders' loan limits sit well above the 5% Deposit Scheme's price caps.
| Way in | Deposit | LMI | Who it's for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor LMI waiver | 5% or 10% | None | Doctors at Westpac Group, ANZ and NAB (to 95%) or CommBank, Bankwest and Suncorp (about 90%) [1] |
| Bank First healthcare waiver | 10% | None | Healthcare workers buying a first home, loans up to $800,000 [3] |
| 5% Deposit Scheme | At least 5%, less than 20% | None; Housing Australia guarantees the lender in its place | First home buyers. No income caps; price caps by area [7] |
| Help to Buy | At least 2% | Not stated on the scheme page | The government contributes up to 30% (existing home) or 40% (new home) for an equity share; income caps apply [8] |
The 5% Deposit Scheme has no income caps, but your deposit must be at least 5% and less than 20%, the home must be under the price cap for its area, and it can't be rented out while the guarantee is in place [7]. Help to Buy needs income at or below $103,000 single or $165,000 joint, and it can't be used together with the 5% Deposit Scheme [8].
Which way comes out ahead is worked out on your numbers. See the First Home Guarantee, Help to Buy and guarantor home loans.
Investment loans for medical professionals
Some doctor waivers carry over to investment loans, usually at a different limit. ANZ goes to 95% for doctors on an investment loan, interest-only included, where your debts are under 6 times your income. NAB goes to 90% on an investment, against 95% for a home. CommBank reaches 94.99% for an investment purchase under its medical package, with debts no more than 6 times income. Bankwest applies the same limits to an investment as to a home [1].
Westpac Group's and Suncorp's investment terms aren't in the terms we hold, so this page doesn't claim them. Equity in a home you own can fund the next purchase. See using equity to buy an investment property.
Overseas-trained doctors and AHPRA registration
For an overseas-trained doctor, AHPRA registration is what the lenders check. ANZ, NAB and Suncorp tie their waivers to it, and ANZ asks for general or specialist registration [1]. Suncorp also needs every borrower to be an Australian resident [1].
Your visa changes the rest: many lenders treat permanent residents like citizens and ask more of temporary visa holders. See home loans for visa holders.
Who doesn't qualify for a doctor LMI waiver?
Some readers expect a waiver and won't get one:
Nurses, under the doctor waivers: CommBank, NAB and Bankwest leave nurses out of their medical groups. Westpac Group covers registered nurses and midwives separately, to 90% [1].
Professions a lender doesn't list: each waiver is written around named professions, and a role that isn't named may not qualify. CommBank, for one, doesn't name chiropractors, osteopaths or paramedics [1].
Customers of Health Professionals Bank: the name doesn't bring a waiver. It's one of the Teachers Mutual Bank group's brands, which charges LMI above 80% [2].
Borrowers at Macquarie, ING or AMP: none of the three waives LMI for professionals [2].
Borrowers outside a lender's limits: above the caps in part 9, that waiver doesn't cover the loan.
ANZ also has a separate low-risk waiver that isn't tied to your job: up to 95% on loans from $2 million in selected postcodes, not for company or trust borrowers [1].
Why doctors' applications get held up
The same few things come up again and again:
Asking Suncorp for a pre-approval, which its waiver doesn't offer (part 2)
Wanting interest-only at a lender whose waiver is principal and interest only (part 10)
A loan above the lender's cap, such as Bankwest past $2 million at 89.99% (part 9)
Buying through a company or trust at Bankwest, whose waiver is for your own name (part 16)
Debts at 6 times your income or more at ANZ, where the waiver drops to 90% (part 19)
Applying before the lender's time-in-job rule is met after a move, so overtime isn't counted yet (part 17)
Refinancing an existing Suncorp loan, which its waiver excludes (part 3)
These are easier to avoid when you pick the lender that fits your case before you apply.
What to have ready
Your AHPRA registration, showing its type (or your state board registration, for vets)
Your last two payslips, showing overtime and allowances on their own lines
Your employment contract, and last year's income statement
Your salary packaging statement, if you package
Tax returns and financial statements, if you run or share a practice or bill as a contractor
An employer letter, if you're new, on leave or packaging non-cash benefits
The full document list is on How it works.
What does a broker cost you?
How a broker is paid, and the rule Money Brain holds against it, is set out in full on its own page: what a mortgage broker costs.
Your first move
You've read the rules. Now there's one question left: which of the six lenders, for your stage, your pay and the price you want? That depends on your registration, your roster, your packaging, your deposit and the size of the loan, and it's what Money Brain works out before anything goes to a lender.
When you're ready, the closing section below is the simplest way to start.
Three facts, and I'll do the checking
Tell me your role and stage of training, your pay before tax and roughly what you want to spend. I'll come back with which lenders' waivers fit you, how far each would go, what each would count of your pay, and whether the waiver or a scheme comes out ahead.
You'll hear back within the hour in business hours, and by 9am the next business day after hours.
Questions doctors ask
Yes. Westpac Group, ANZ and NAB waive lenders mortgage insurance for doctors up to 95% of a home's price, and CommBank, Suncorp and Bankwest to about 90% (Bankwest on loans up to $2 million), each with its own conditions, on the lenders' policies checked by Money Brain.
Sources
- 1
Lender policies on professional LMI waivers: Westpac Group (Westpac, St.George, Bank of Melbourne, BankSA), ANZ, NAB, CommBank, Bankwest, Suncorp. Checked 1 October 2026 and re-checked 21 October 2026; CommBank's medical list re-read 2 October 2026.
- 2
Macquarie, ING, AMP, Teachers Mutual Bank group: no professional LMI waiver. Checked 1 October 2026 and re-checked 21 October 2026.
- 3
Bank First: LMI waiver for healthcare and education workers. Checked 3 October 2026 and re-checked 21 October 2026.
- 4
LMI premium: one insurer's published rate card, standard rates. Checked 21 October 2026.
- 5
Lender credit policies on overtime, allowances, salary packaging, casual income, new employment and parental leave: Westpac Group, NAB, Bankwest, Macquarie, ING, ANZ, AMP. Read 30 September 2026 (each policy card last checked between 22 and 29 September 2026).
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
APRA: debt-to-income limit from 1 February 2026 and serviceability buffer of 3 percentage points from October 2021. Read 29 September 2026.
Updated 3 October 2026