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More health professionals will be able to buy a house without needing to meet the typical deposit to avoid Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) at Westpac.
Westpac announced the expansion of its criteria for LMI waiver, which will now include eight further allied health professions: audiologists, occupational therapists, osteopaths, podiatrists, psychologists, radiographers, sonographers, and speech pathologists.
Westpac chief executive for consumer and business banking Chris de Bruin said this is part of the bank’s efforts to help more women into homeownership.
“We have recently expanded our LMI Waiver to include additional health professions, like speech pathologists and occupational therapists, where women make up most of the workforce,” he said.
“This will enable more women to purchase their home sooner with a reduced deposit and without the expense of mortgage insurance.”
Homebuyers applying for a home loan for a property worth $650,000 would likely be required to pay an LMI premium of at least $8,000 upfront if they do not meet the typical 20% deposit.
Eligible borrowers can reach out to their mortgage brokers or directly go to their bank branch to discuss about the LMI waiver.
In addition to the expansion of the LMI Waiver, Westpac also announced the following initiatives:
- Improving access to finance for childcare centre operators – Westpac will be introducing more flexible lending criteria and priority service for childcare centre operators, including reduced equity requirements and competitive lending rates and establishment fees. The bank also has dedicated business bankers to support childcare businesses looking to expand.
- Increasing female lending workforce – Westpac employees will have access to a development and upskilling program to transition to home and business lending roles, with a goal to increase female participation within the bank’s home and business lending workforce. Up to 100 roles will be made available to employees and external applicants.
Collections: Mortgage News
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