Free First Home Buyer Calculator for New Zealanders
Bring it all together: your savings, KiwiSaver balance available for First Home Withdrawal, household income, and the price of the home you want to buy. The calculator surfaces which one is the binding constraint.
Your situation
Based on $30,000 savings + $45,000 KiwiSaver towards a 20% deposit on an $800,000 home.
About our First Home Buyer Calculator
A first-home purchase has four moving parts: the deposit you have saved, the KiwiSaverKiwiSaverNZ workplace retirement savings scheme. From 1 April 2026, minimum employee and employer contributions are both 3.5% of gross pay (rising to 4% in 2028); the government adds 25c per $1, capped at $260.72/yr.View in glossary → balance you can withdraw, the loan a bank will lend on your income, and the price you can find a house at. The calculator pulls them into one view and tells you which is the binding constraint.
The two most common bottlenecks are deposit and borrowing capacity. Deposit binds when the gap between your saved funds and 20% of the target price is meaningful, usually for first-time savers in their early career. Borrowing capacity binds when the loan you would need exceeds the DTIDebt-to-income (DTI)Total monthly debt payments divided by gross monthly income; a key lender affordability test.View in glossary → cap on your household income, usually for buyers in expensive markets like Auckland and Wellington.
Move the price slider to see how a $50,000 change in target affects both the deposit timeline and the loan-to-income ratio. Move the savings sliders to see how additional KiwiSaver or personal savings each shift the deposit-side timeline.
How to use it
Enter the target house price, your personal savings, your combined KiwiSaver balance, your household gross income, and your monthly saving rate.
For the price, the REINZ House Price Index lists median sale prices by region and city; that figure plus or minus 10-15% is a reasonable starting target. For the KiwiSaver balance, log in to your provider’s portal and check the most recent figure.
The result panel returns the months to be ready (deposit-side timeline), the deposit gap remaining, and a borrowing-capacity sanity check (target loan vs. 6× household income).
Why use it
The single most useful piece of information a first-home buyer can have is which constraint is binding. If the deposit is binding, the answer is to keep saving and review monthly. If borrowing capacity is binding, no amount of saving fixes it; the answer is either to raise income, lower the target price, or wait for prices to fall.
Most NZ first-home buyers run the deposit calculation but skip the borrowing test, assuming that if they can save the deposit they can afford the loan. The two are independent. A buyer who saves a $200,000 deposit on a $1 million house in Auckland still needs $800,000 of borrowing, which requires $133,333 of household income to clear the 6× DTI test even before servicing is considered.
For couples, the calculator also makes the joint-vs-solo decision concrete. A second income often shifts the binding constraint from borrowing capacity (where it was for one person) to deposit (where it is for two). The conversation about how much each partner contributes to the deposit becomes more useful with the actual numbers in front of you.
The maths behind it
Months to ready = (20% × Price − Cash − (KiwiSaver − $1,000)) ÷ Monthly saving The calculator targets a 20% deposit, the threshold below which banks add a low-equity margin. Available funds combine personal cash with the KiwiSaver balance, less the $1,000 that must remain. The borrowing-capacity sanity check applies the RBNZ 6× DTI cap to household gross income (the calculator uses 6× as the owner-occupier line). The lower of the deposit timeline and the DTI cap on the loan is the binding constraint, and the calculator surfaces both.
Worked example
Pita and Hannah, both teachers in Invercargill, eyeing a $480,000 first home.
Pita and Hannah jointly earn $112,000 gross. They have $35,000 in personal savings plus $52,000 between them in KiwiSaver, of which $51,000 can be withdrawn (the $1,000 minimum stays in each account).
A 20% deposit on a $480,000 house is $96,000. Their available funds today are $35,000 + $51,000 = $86,000. The gap is $10,000, and at $1,400 a month they bridge it in roughly 7 months.
On the borrowing side, $480,000 minus their $96,000 deposit gives a target loan of $384,000. Against $112,000 household income, that is a DTI of 3.4×, well under the RBNZ’s 6× owner-occupier cap. Servicing should also clear at most banks at a stress rate of 8.5%.
For Pita and Hannah, the deposit is the binding constraint, not the loan. Seven months from now they should be ready to make a serious offer in the Invercargill market. The same numbers in Auckland against a $980,000 median price would put their timeline closer to four years.
Things to keep in mind
- KiwiSaver eligibility takes three years. First Home WithdrawalFirst Home WithdrawalPermission to withdraw KiwiSaver balance (minus $1,000) toward buying your first home.View in glossary → requires three years of KiwiSaver contributions, NZ residency, and using the home as a main residence for at least six months. New members or recent transfers from overseas may not yet qualify.
- First Home Grant is closed. The Kāinga Ora First Home Grant ($5,000-$10,000) ended on 22 May 2024 and has not been replaced. Calculators or articles referencing the grant for purchases after that date no longer apply.
- 20% is the standard, not the floor. NZ banks can lend above 80% LVR on a small share of new lending each month, with a low-equity margin on the rate. A 10% deposit is workable, just more expensive while the LVR stays high.
- Servicing is its own test. A loan that fits within the DTI cap may still fail the bank’s servicing test if living expenses or other debt are high. The calculator uses a simple DTI sanity check; the borrowing-capacity calculator runs the full servicing test.
- Settlement costs add $3,000-$5,000. Legal, valuation, building inspection, and LIM report typically run $3,000-$5,000 on top of the deposit. Some banks contribute a cash-back of $2,000-$3,000 on a first-home loan, which offsets most of these.
NZ-specific notes
FAQs
How much KiwiSaver can I actually withdraw?
Your full balance, less $1,000 that must remain in the account. The withdrawal includes employer contributions, government top-ups, and investment growth. The only condition beyond the three-year contribution test is that you have not used the First Home Withdrawal before.
What replaces the First Home Grant?
No central-government replacement has been announced as of mid-2026. Some councils run separate first-home assistance schemes (typically deposit top-up loans against future-equity), but they are limited and means-tested. The KiwiSaver withdrawal remains the main central-government support.
Do I have to use a 20% deposit?
No. NZ banks can lend above 80% LVR, with a low-equity margin of 0.5% to 1.5% added to the contract rate while the LVR stays above 80%. The calculator targets 20% by default because it is the threshold below which the margin disappears.
How does the bank decide if I can afford the loan?
Two tests: a servicing test (your after-tax income minus living expenses and other debt has to cover repayments at a stress-tested rate, typically 2.5-3 percentage points above the contract rate), and a DTI test (the Reserve Bank caps owner-occupier lending above 6× household gross income). The lower ceiling is the binding one.
Can I co-buy with family or friends?
Yes. NZ banks accept joint applications from family members, friends, and unmarried partners. Each applicant’s income and KiwiSaver counts toward the deposit and servicing test. A separate joint-ownership agreement (drafted by a solicitor) sets out how the property is split, what happens if one party wants out, and how repayments are shared.
How does the Tūāpapa shared-equity scheme work?
Kāinga Ora’s First Home Partner programme (the successor to Tūāpapa shared-equity) ended in May 2024 alongside the First Home Grant. The current options for first-home buyers come down to KiwiSaver withdrawal, family contributions, and standard low-equity lending.
What if my deposit is mostly KiwiSaver and very little cash?
Banks accept a deposit funded primarily from a KiwiSaver withdrawal, so long as the eligibility conditions are met and the home becomes a main residence. Some banks prefer to see a small "genuine savings" component (typically 5% of price) demonstrated over six months, separate from KiwiSaver. The bank’s home-loan team can confirm their specific test before you settle.
References & sources
- Inland Revenue, "Buying my first home (KiwiSaver First Home Withdrawal)". ird.govt.nz
- Reserve Bank of New Zealand, "Macro-prudential policy (LVR and DTI restrictions)". rbnz.govt.nz
- Kāinga Ora, "First Home Grant scheme (closed)". kaingaora.govt.nz
- REINZ, "Monthly property report and HPI". reinz.co.nz