Documents Required for a Home Loan Application

Part 1: Identity and income

Your home loan application needs supporting information so the lender can assess your circumstances.

The documents required depend on your income, financial position and the lender. I’ll provide a checklist tailored to your application and help you work through it.

You don’t need to gather everything before our first conversation. We can start by understanding your plans and identifying what will be needed.

1. Confirming your identity

Lenders need to verify your identity. Commonly requested documents include a current passport or driver’s licence, with additional identification or supporting documents where required.

If your name differs between documents, evidence of the change may also be needed.

I’ll confirm which documents are accepted and explain any additional verification or certification requirements. ANZ’s document guide provides examples.

2. Salary and wage income

If you’re employed, the lender may request documents such as:

• Recent payslips
• Bank statements showing salary payments
• An employment contract or letter from your employer
• Relevant income statements, tax returns or notices of assessment

If your income includes casual work, overtime, allowances, commission or bonuses, additional information may be needed to understand its history and consistency.

I’ll confirm the evidence and periods required for your circumstances. NAB’s application guide outlines examples for different income sources.

3. Self-employed income

For self-employed applicants, the lender needs to understand the business and the income available to support the loan.

Depending on your business structure and the lender, supporting information may include:

• Personal and business tax returns
• Australian Taxation Office notices of assessment
• Business financial statements
• Business Activity Statements
• Business bank statements

I’ll confirm which documents and reporting periods are relevant to your application. If your circumstances need further explanation, we can discuss what additional information may help the lender assess them. Bankwest explains examples of self-employed income evidence.

4. Other sources of income

If other income forms part of your application, supporting documents may include:

• Rental income: lease agreements, property manager statements or evidence of rental payments
• Government payments: current entitlement statements and evidence of payments received
• Superannuation or pension income: relevant fund, pension or bank statements
• Investment income: dividend statements or other evidence of the income received

Whether an income source can be included, and how it is assessed, depends on the lender’s policy and your circumstances.

5. Providing clear and current information

I’ll explain which documents are needed, the periods they must cover and how to provide them securely.

Clear, readable copies with all requested pages help avoid unnecessary follow-up. Updated documents may be needed if information changes or becomes out of date while the application is progressing.

If you’re unsure about a request or can’t locate a document, get in touch. I’ll help you understand what is required and discuss the next steps.

Deposits, assets, debts and living expenses

Your identity and income are part of the overall picture. In Part 2, we’ll cover the information needed about your deposit, savings, assets and financial commitments.

Let’s work through it together

Whether you’re local or interstate, we can discuss your application over Zoom.

Book a 15-minute phone call, and we’ll talk about your plans and where to start.