Professional lending has two separate tests. Whether your occupation appears on a lender’s accepted list, which is not published and varies widely, and how much of your remuneration package that lender will count. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney assesses both before selecting the lender, particularly where your income includes more than a base salary.
For senior roles the second test usually matters more, because base salary is often the smaller half. Start with the guide to LMI waivers by profession.
Lists are unpublished and include roles most borrowers would not expect. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney checks your occupation across the lender panel rather than guessing at it.
A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney knows which lenders count bonus, commission, share awards and allowances, and at what proportion when assessing your income.
Vested share awards with a consistent history are counted by some lenders and ignored by most, which can be the largest single variable on the file. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney checks how each lender treats this income.
Income earned offshore is accepted by a limited group of lenders, usually shaded and subject to the currency it is paid in. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney can identify lenders that may accept this type of income.
Plenty of lenders advertise professional lending. Fewer will tell you that your short term incentive, your car allowance and your vested shares are each treated differently by each of them.
Every file starts with your occupation, your employment contract and the shape of your package. Read how waived insurance lending works.
A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney assesses base, variable and equity pay according to the treatment each lender applies.
A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney manages submission, insurer sign off and settlement from the same office, so the file keeps moving between meetings.
A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney can use two or three years of bonus statements to show the lender a consistent income history. See the income annualisation calculator. See the income annualisation calculator.
Many senior professionals work through their own entity. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney can assess the structure and identify suitable lending options. See self employed lending. See self employed lending.
A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney checks two things before any property: whether your occupation is accepted and what share of your remuneration package each lender will actually count..
Your exact job title, industry and any professional registration or membership are checked across the lender panel. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney uses these details to identify lenders that may suit your profession.
Base, bonus, commission, allowances and vested equity are assessed lender by lender. A Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney checks what each lender will count and how the income is shaded. See what lenders count and shade. See what lenders count and shade.
Contract, bonus history and registration supplied upfront. Documents are in the document checklist.
As a Home Loan Broker for Professionals in Sydney, we settle the purchase, then review the position when your remuneration package or role changes.
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The waiver is a threshold question. Three other things decide the borrowing figure, and for senior roles they matter far more.
First, which components of your package are counted, because base salary alone can be well under half of total remuneration. Second, the history behind the variable components, since a bonus paid consistently for three years is treated quite differently from a first payment.
Third, the form the variable pay takes, as cash bonus, commission, vested shares and unvested awards sit on a descending scale of lender acceptance. This is where a professional mortgage broker Sydney executives trust earns the engagement. Compare medico lending and accounting profession lending where a specific designation applies.
Speak with our professional lending team on +61 447 959 546
Borrowers ask how do I know if my occupation qualifies for professional lending in Sydney, and the honest answer is that you cannot find out online. The lists are unpublished, they differ between lenders and they change, so they have to be checked directly.
Read how the premium is calculated and how borrowing power is worked out.
The following is an illustrative example of the process rather than a client file, and no figures are implied.
A senior executive has a base salary, an annual short term incentive paid in cash, a long term incentive delivered in shares that vest over three years, and a car allowance. Assessed on base alone, the borrowing figure is a fraction of what the household actually earns.
The submission supplies three years of incentive statements so the cash bonus has a demonstrable history, documents the vesting schedule for the share component, and places the file with a lender whose policy counts both. Outcomes always depend on lender assessment.
At senior levels the base salary is often the smaller half of the package. A lender that counts only the base is not assessing the borrower, it is assessing one line of a payslip.
Paritosh Wadhwani, Director and Principal Broker, APW Finance
Borrowers ask what does a home loan broker for professionals in Sydney check against lender lists before applying. These are the questions that follow.
Your exact job title rather than an approximation of it, any professional registration or membership you hold, and your industry, since some lenders list by industry rather than by role.
Then the income policy behind the list, because a lender that accepts your occupation but ignores your bonus may still produce the worse answer.
Only by having the lists checked directly, because they are not published anywhere. An executive home loan specialist NSW wide with current accreditation can confirm your position across the panel in one conversation.
That happens without an application and without an enquiry being recorded on your credit file.
Medical, dental, legal and accounting roles appear most consistently. Beyond that the lists diverge sharply and can include actuaries, engineers, some senior finance and technology roles, and a range of allied health disciplines.
Because no two lenders agree, the only answer that matters is whether a lender you can use accepts your specific role.
Usually in part, and the proportion depends on the history. A bonus paid consistently across two or three years is counted more readily than a first payment, and most lenders shade it rather than taking the full figure.
A contractually guaranteed bonus is treated far more favourably than a discretionary one, so the wording of your contract matters.
Vested share awards with a consistent history of vesting and sale are counted by a small number of lenders. Unvested awards and options are almost universally excluded.
Where equity is a large share of your package, finding one of the lenders that counts the vested portion is often worth more than any rate negotiation.
Frequently, and it differs by lender and by occupation group. Some apply a threshold to every occupation outside the core medical and legal groups, and others waive on registration or membership alone.
Because a threshold can be revised at any time, we take it from the lender on the day rather than relying on a published number.
With a limited group of lenders, and usually shaded more heavily than domestic income. The currency matters, as does whether you are an Australian tax resident and whether the employer has an Australian presence.
Where overseas income is the main source, lender selection is effectively the whole application.
Often yes, where you hold the relevant registration or membership, though the income assessment moves from payslips to tax returns and financials.
That changes the document list and brings add-backs into play, which can work in your favour. The waiver and the income assessment are separate questions.
For senior roles this table matters more than the occupation list, because it decides how much of your actual income a lender will recognise.
| The component | How lenders usually treat it | What to evidence | Where it breaks down |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base salary | Counted in full by every lender | Payslips and the employment contract | Rarely an issue |
| Contractually guaranteed bonus | Usually counted in full or close to it, because it is not discretionary | The contract clause stating the guarantee, plus payment history | Where the guarantee is conditional on performance measures |
| Discretionary annual bonus | Counted in part, commonly shaded, and usually only with a history | Two or three years of bonus statements or payment summaries | A first year bonus, which many lenders exclude entirely |
| Commission | Counted with a history, often averaged over two years rather than annualised | Payslips showing the commission separately, over a full cycle | A strong recent period averaged down against a weaker prior year |
| Vested share awards | Counted by a small group of lenders where vesting and sale are consistent | Vesting schedule, holding statements and evidence of past sales | Most lenders exclude equity pay altogether |
| Unvested awards and options | Almost universally excluded, since the income is contingent | Not usually worth supplying | Treat as outside your assessable income when planning |
| Car and other allowances | Counted in part by many lenders, in full by a few, ignored by some | Payslips showing the allowance as a separate line | Allowances that are reimbursements rather than income |
| Overseas or foreign currency income | Accepted by a limited group of lenders, shaded for currency risk | Contract, payslips, tax residency position and currency of payment | Where no Australian employer presence exists |
Two points worth making. The occupation list and the income policy are separate tests, and a lender can accept your occupation while discounting most of your pay. For senior packages the second test is usually where the file is won.
Background on how the insurance itself works is published by ASIC Moneysmart. Occupation lists and income policy are set by individual lenders and change without notice.
| How APW works | What it changes for a Sydney professional |
|---|---|
| Occupation lists checked before applying | Your job title is confirmed against each panel list before anything reaches a credit file |
| More than 50 banks and non-banks | No two lists agree, so the breadth is what finds your occupation |
| The full package assembled | Base, bonus, commission, allowances and vested equity, not just the base line |
| Bonus history evidenced | Two or three years supplied upfront, which changes the treatment materially |
| Equity pay placed deliberately | Files with large share components go to the lenders that count them |
| Overseas income handled | Placed with lenders that accept it rather than declined by those that do not |
| Reviewed at each package change | A professional mortgage broker Sydney executives return to at every promotion |
Paritosh Wadhwani | Director and Principal Broker, APW Finance
Member of the Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA). Arranging residential, investment, commercial and specialist lending for Sydney clients across a panel of more than 50 lenders.
APW Finance Pty Ltd, 304/20a Lexington Drive, Bella Vista NSW 2153. Email: info@apwfinance.com. Phone: +61 447 959 546.
ACN 620 646 479 | ABN 79 620 646 479
Last reviewed: October 2026.
This page is general information only. It does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs, and it is not financial, credit or tax advice.
Occupation lists, remuneration policy and lending criteria change, and every application is subject to lender approval. Consider whether this information suits your circumstances and seek independent advice before acting. Full terms on our disclaimer page.
Send through your contract and your last two incentive statements. That is usually enough to tell you which lenders list your role and how much of the package they will recognise.
Bella Vista NSW 2153
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