Mosman, Manly and Chatswood are three of Sydney's most coveted addresses, and three genuinely different markets. Mosman is harbourside prestige. Manly is beachside lifestyle with a village at its centre. Chatswood is the commercial heart of the North Shore, with the deepest and most liquid mix of stock of the three.
What they share is that the number people fixate on — the purchase price — is only one of five figures that decide whether a purchase is possible. This is how to work out all five for whatever price point you are looking at, rather than relying on a median that was out of date the day it was published.
1. The deposit, and what 20% actually buys you
Twenty per cent of the purchase price is the threshold most people aim for, and the reason is Lenders Mortgage Insurance rather than the deposit itself. Below 20% equity, most lenders require LMI — a one-off premium that protects the lender, not you, and which rises steeply as your deposit shrinks.
You can absolutely buy with less than 20%. Plenty of people do, and in a rising market paying LMI to buy sooner has often been the cheaper decision. The point is to make it deliberately, with the premium quantified, rather than discovering it late.
2. Stamp duty — a published scale, not a guess
NSW transfer duty is set on a sliding scale that rises faster than the price does, so it is a bigger number at the top of these markets than most buyers expect. It is also entirely knowable in advance.
Rather than quote figures that change with each state budget, use the source: Revenue NSW publishes a transfer duty calculator that gives you the exact amount for your purchase price. First home buyers may be eligible for concessions or exemptions, and those thresholds are reviewed periodically — check the current criteria rather than relying on what applied when friends bought.
3. The other upfront costs
Beyond deposit and duty, budget for legal or conveyancing fees, building and pest inspections (and a strata report if you are buying a unit), loan application and valuation fees where they apply, lender's legal costs, and moving. Individually small; collectively enough to derail a settlement if they were not planned for.
It is also worth holding a buffer beyond the minimum. Landing at settlement with nothing left is a fragile position, and lenders increasingly look at what remains after completion, not just what you have on the day you apply.
4. Borrowing capacity — the real ceiling
Deposit determines whether you can get in. Borrowing capacity determines how far up you can go, and it is assessed rather than calculated from your salary. Income type, existing debts, credit card limits and the assessment-rate buffer all move it, and different lenders reach materially different numbers on identical finances.
Our guide to borrowing capacity goes through what drives that figure and the few things that genuinely change it.
5. Equity, if you already own
Many buyers in these three markets are not first-timers assembling cash — they are upgraders. If you already own property anywhere, usable equity can fund part or all of the deposit without selling first.
That opens a timing question of its own: whether to buy before selling, and how to fund the overlap. We cover the options, including where bridging finance fits and where it does not, in our guide to buying before you sell.
How the three markets differ in practice
Mosman sits at the premium end, and large loans are assessed differently to small ones — tighter maximum ratios above certain amounts, second valuations, and credit approval at a higher level. Harbourside and heritage homes also have fewer directly comparable sales, so valuations vary more between lenders than they would on a standard house.
Manly mixes freestanding homes, semis, strata units and, in pockets, company title — which far fewer lenders will fund, usually at a lower ratio. Confirming the title type early matters more here than in most suburbs.
Chatswood has the highest concentration of apartments of the three. Some lenders cap their exposure in postcodes with a lot of apartment stock, which can mean a lower maximum ratio and a larger deposit than the same buyer would need for a house nearby. Minimum floor-area rules apply too.
Work backwards from the number, not towards it
The useful sequence is: establish borrowing capacity first, add the deposit you can actually assemble, subtract duty and costs, and the result is your genuine price ceiling. Most people do it the other way round — fall for a property, then work out whether it is reachable — and that is how finance clauses get missed and auctions get lost.
Talk to a Sabea broker and we will work through all five figures for your situation, across more than 60 lenders, before you start looking.
General information only. It does not take your objectives, financial situation or needs into account, and it is not credit or financial advice. Lender policy, rates and eligibility change regularly and vary between lenders — talk to us about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.