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Getting started — first home buyer

Property Insights models the numbers behind buying a home — stamp duty, loan repayments, and the milestones between an offer and settlement — even though a home you live in doesn’t produce rental income.

  1. Set your country in Settings — this determines your stamp duty rules, financial year, and currency symbol.
  2. Add your property — even a rough address you’re considering works. You don’t need a signed contract to start modelling.
  3. Enter the purchase price, even as an estimate. This drives stamp duty and loan repayment calculations.
  4. Set your loan details — interest rate, term, and deposit. This is the foundation of your cashflow model.
  5. Add a bank account to track your deposit savings or offset balance.
  6. Enable two-factor authentication to protect your account.
  • Review stamp duty — check whether a first-home-buyer concession applies in your state or country. Property Insights estimates stamp duty automatically based on your address and purchase price, with a one-click “Use” button to apply the estimate.
  • Set payment milestones — track exchange deposit, stamp duty due date, and settlement balance on the Buying Plan tab, so you always know what’s due and when.
  • Add your mortgage broker as a contact and link them to the property.
  • Review your forecast (5 years on Free, 10 on Pro/Investor) to see how repayments and equity change over time.

Every property has an isOwnerOccupier setting. Turning it on tells Property Insights this is a home you live in, not a rental:

  • Weekly rent and vacancy assumptions are set to 0 — you’re not renting it out.
  • Rental income and yield statistics are hidden, since they don’t apply.
  • Main-residence CGT exemption becomes available on the Tax tab (set separately, since eligibility rules vary by country).

If you’re paying rent elsewhere while saving for this home, or paying your own mortgage on it, set that distinction directly on the property’s Summary page after you’ve added it.

Weighing up more than 2 properties at once? The Free plan’s 2-property limit also caps the side-by-side compare view. The Homebuyer add-on (Settings → Plan) is a one-time, non-subscription purchase that removes the property limit and unlocks sort, select, and side-by-side compare on the Properties page — aimed specifically at this situation, without needing a full Pro subscription.

  • CSV import guide if you’re bringing in property data from a spreadsheet
  • Subscriptions & plans FAQ — the Free plan covers up to 2 properties; the Homebuyer add-on removes that cap and unlocks compare tools without a subscription