FIELD NOTES

Field notes

Plain-English property literacy. One mechanism a week, every claim traced to a named source.

A new note lands every Saturday morning.

LATEST NOTE

Underquoting: how it works, why it is unlawful, and what you can do

Underquoting is telling buyers a price below what the seller will actually accept to draw a bigger crowd. This explains the mechanism, why it is against the rules, and how to report it.

24 October 2026 5 min readRead

Get finance-ready

16 of 16 published

Finance
Genuine savings: why lenders check how you saved the deposit
A lender checks where your deposit came from, as well as whether it exists. Here's what "genuine savings" means and how gifts fit in.
25 July 2026 5 min readRead
Finance
Borrowing power: how a lender turns your pay slip into a loan size
Borrowing power comes from your income minus your commitments minus your living costs, tested against a harder scenario. Here is what actually moves that number.
1 August 2026 5 min readRead
Finance
Your credit report: what a lender sees before they see you
A plain-English guide to what a credit report actually records, how it differs from a credit score, and how to check and correct your own file before a lender does.
8 August 2026 5 min readRead
Finance
Pre-approval vs unconditional approval: what "approved" actually means
Pre-approval is a lender's early indication of what it may lend you, with conditions still to check. Here is what has to happen before the money is actually yours.
15 August 2026 5 min readRead
Finance
Loan-to-value ratio: how it can decide your rate and your insurance
A plain-English guide to loan-to-value ratio: how it's calculated, why lenders treat it as their core risk measure, and how it can decide your rate and whether you'll pay for lenders mortgage insurance.
22 August 2026 5 min readRead
Finance
The serviceability buffer: why the bank tests your loan at a higher rate than your contract rate
Lenders check whether you could still afford your repayments at a higher interest rate than the one on your contract. Here is why that buffer exists and how to run the same test on yourself before you borrow.
29 August 2026 5 min readRead

See all 16

Find and assess

2 of 9 published

Finding a home
How to read a property listing past the agent's language
Listings are advertising with rules attached. Here is how to read the common phrases, the missing photos, and the vague price guide for what they actually signal.
17 October 2026 5 min readRead

Offer, contract and auction

2 of 12 published

Settle and move in

1 of 5 published

Tax and investing Finding a home
Stamp duty: the upfront cost first-home buyers forget to budget for
After the deposit, stamp duty is often one of the biggest cheques in a home purchase, and you generally cannot borrow it. Here is how it works and where concessions may apply.
23 May 2026 5 min readRead

Field notes

Underquoting: how it works, why it is unlawful, and what you can do

Get finance-ready

Genuine savings: why lenders check how you saved the deposit

Borrowing power: how a lender turns your pay slip into a loan size

Your credit report: what a lender sees before they see you

Pre-approval vs unconditional approval: what "approved" actually means

Loan-to-value ratio: how it can decide your rate and your insurance

The serviceability buffer: why the bank tests your loan at a higher rate than your contract rate

Find and assess

How to read a property listing past the agent's language

Offer, contract and auction

Cooling-off and building & pest: your two ways out after you sign

Conveyancer or solicitor: who handles your settlement, and what it costs

Settle and move in

Stamp duty: the upfront cost first-home buyers forget to budget for