In a nutshell, no. We generally recommend you wait until after your loan has settled before you look at changing your job or employment situation. There are some exceptions to this which we will explore further below.
If you have made an offer and agreed to purchase a property
We recommend you wait until your loan has settled before changing jobs. This ensures there’s no interruption to your pay cycle, employment or income.
While the bank will usually do all their checks prior to formal approval, they do reserve the right to cancel your settlement if your situation changes and they don’t think you are suitable for a loan anymore.
But changing jobs will mean more money!
This is generally a considered quite a good thing by the lender, either before you buy or after you settle. It doesn’t matter if it’s your dream job and you’ll be on more money, if some banks get wind that your circumstances have changed they may still withdraw your approval.
If you are pre-approved but haven’t yet purchased
Most banks these days are comfortable with you changing jobs. But the timing is important as most lenders might ask to see two payslips in your new job before updating your pre-approval or giving a full approval.
As an example, if you change jobs just before you bought, it may cause an issue with some lenders. The main problem is that they can’t verify your income with payslips and might not be able to give you a full approval, causing issues with settlement.
The key considerations are:
- There isn’t a large gap between ending and starting a new job (less then 4 weeks)
- You’re in the same industry
- Your income is staying the same or increasing
- You are moving to a permanent role (not casual or contract)
Each bank is different, just as each situation is different. A bank like Bankwest won’t allow you to be on probation if you are borrowing above 80% LVR whereas a lender like NAB is more relaxed (subject to credit approval).
Best to speak to us before you go making a big life changing move, as it could have an undesired knock-on effect you weren’t aware of.