Australia LMI (Lenders Mortgage Insurance) Calculator

LMI is required in Australia whenever your loan-to-value ratio (LVR) is above 80% — that is, your deposit is below 20% — on a standard home loan. It protects the LENDER, not you, if you default and the sale proceeds don't cover the outstanding loan. LMI lets buyers with a smaller deposit still access a home loan sooner, at the cost of a premium — usually a one-off amount either paid upfront or (more commonly) capitalised into the loan balance.

It's tiered by LVR band: roughly 0.9% of the loan for LVR between 80-85%, rising to about 1.3% (85-90%), 2.6% (90-95%), and around 3.4% for LVR above 95%. On a $630,000 loan at 90% LVR (a 10% deposit on a $700,000 property), for example, the premium alone would be roughly $8,190, before adding the state stamp duty most jurisdictions charge on the premium itself. These are illustrative estimates — always get an exact quote from your lender or broker.

In most Australian states and territories, yes — stamp duty is charged on the LMI premium itself, at a state-specific rate (commonly around 9-10% of the premium), in addition to any stamp duty on the property purchase itself (see our Stamp Duty Calculator for that separate cost). This calculator includes an estimate of duty on the LMI premium in your total LMI cost.

The most direct way is a deposit of 20% or more (LVR at or below 80%), which makes LMI unnecessary entirely. Some lenders also offer LMI waivers for certain professions (like doctors, lawyers, and accountants) even at higher LVRs, and family guarantor loans can let a family member's equity stand in for part of your deposit to avoid LMI. The First Home Guarantee (a federal scheme, for eligible buyers) also allows a lower deposit without LMI, subject to place availability and eligibility criteria — not modelled in this calculator.

It's a one-off cost, calculated once at settlement (or when you draw down the loan) based on your LVR and loan amount at that time. It doesn't recur annually like some other loan costs. If you later pay down your loan or your property value rises enough to bring your LVR back to 80% or below, you generally can't get a refund of LMI already paid, though refinancing to a new lender once you have sufficient equity would not require paying LMI again on the new loan.

No — this is an illustrative estimate. Real LMI premiums (from insurers like Helia or QBE) are priced off detailed grids keyed by BOTH loan size AND LVR band, and can vary by insurer and by owner-occupier vs. investor status. The flat rate-per-LVR-band figures used here are distilled mid-points from public rate cards for a representative loan size — always get an exact quote from your lender before relying on a specific figure.