Yes, you can buy a home on a 491 visa. The strongest and most common path is buying with your Australian partner. If your partner is an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen, and you buy your home together as joint tenants, you are in the same lending position as a partner-visa couple: up to 95% of the property value, the FIRB joint-tenancy exemption, and the freedom to buy an established home, not just new builds. Buying on your own is possible too, just less common, and we cover that honestly further down. Book a free Lending Assessment and we will show you exactly what you can borrow, which lenders on our 31+ panel write 491 loans, and how to set this purchase up for the day your permanent residency through the 191 visa comes through. If you are buying with an Australian partner, our partner visa home loan guide covers the same route in detail.
This is the path most of our 491 clients take, and it is the one that opens up much stronger terms.
If you are buying your home together with a partner who is an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen, and you hold the property as joint tenants, the lender treats your application much like any other Australian borrower’s. The favourable position comes from your Australian partner being on the title with you, not from your 491 subclass.
What buying jointly with your Australian partner can unlock:
The FIRB joint-tenancy exemption applies when all four are true:
A common mistake is buying as tenants in common, often on advice aimed at asset protection. That structure does not qualify for the FIRB exemption, even when your partner is Australian, which means FIRB approval would be required and the April 2025 restrictions may apply. We confirm your FIRB position before you start searching, so you know whether you are searching the full market or new stock only.
A worked example: on an $800,000 regional home bought jointly with your Australian partner, a 5% deposit is $40,000 and a 20% deposit is $160,000. For many couples that $120,000 difference decides whether you buy now or years from now.
If this is your situation, our partner visa home loan guide walks through the same joint-purchase route in full, including grants and stamp duty concessions.
Whichever way you buy, the 491 is a provisional visa with a clear pathway to permanent residency through the Subclass 191 visa. Many major banks have restrictive temporary-visa policies, and some will not lend to 491 holders at all. A smaller group of lenders, including non-bank and specialist lenders, actively write 491 loans. The job is knowing which lenders fit your situation and presenting your file to them the first time. We work across a panel of 31+ lenders to do exactly that.
If you do not have an Australian partner buying with you, you can still buy. The terms are tighter and the path is less common for 491 holders, so here is the honest picture, with nothing from the joint route carried across.
What applies when you buy solo as a 491 holder:
FIRB application fee (new dwelling or vacant land): the fee is indexed each July and scales with the property price; it runs well into five figures on a typical purchase (current fees are in our FIRB approval guide). The fee is non-refundable, so be confident in the purchase before you lodge. FIRB approval commonly takes around a month and can run longer, so build that window into your timeline, especially at auction.
Foreign-buyer stamp duty surcharge by state: NSW 9%, VIC 8%, QLD 8%, TAS 8%, WA 7%, SA 7%. The ACT and NT do not charge a foreign-buyer surcharge. On an $800,000 purchase, a 9% surcharge in NSW is $72,000, so it is a major cost to plan for.
The honest takeaway: buying solo on a 491 is possible with the right lender. It costs more (a larger deposit, FIRB, the surcharge) and it is limited to new stock, and we will place it for you when that is your situation. If you do have an Australian, permanent resident, or New Zealand partner, the joint route above gives you stronger terms, so that is the one we would point you to first.
For the 491 visa, “regional” means everywhere in Australia except Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Your property has to sit in a designated regional area to comply with your visa conditions, whether you buy jointly or on your own.
Designated regional areas for the 491 visa include:
The definition is broader than most people expect. You are not limited to small country towns. Major regional centres with several hundred thousand people qualify.
Why this matters for your home loan:
A common mistake: some 491 holders assume they can buy in a capital city and rent it out while living regionally. Your purchase must be your principal place of residence, both for your visa conditions and, if you are buying solo, for FIRB. An investment property in a non-regional area would breach both.
We know which lenders are comfortable in regional postcodes and which tend to create problems at the valuation stage. A declined valuation or a restricted postcode can cost weeks, so getting the lender match right the first time is where the regional piece pays off.
The 491 is a provisional visa with a defined pathway to permanent residency through the Subclass 191 visa. Planning for that transition now is one of the most useful things we do for 491 clients.
The 491 to 191 pathway:
What changes once your 191 (permanent residency) is granted:
Why this matters for your first purchase: if you buy now and transition to the 191 in a few years, your position changes fundamentally. We structure your first application with that pathway in mind, choosing lenders and loan products that serve you today and set you up to refinance or buy again once your PR is granted. If you are buying solo now, this is the moment the new-dwelling and FIRB constraints disappear. If you bought jointly with your Australian partner, PR simply broadens an already strong position.
The hardest part of buying on a 491 usually is not your finances. It is not knowing which lenders will approve you, and wondering whether your visa puts a home out of reach.
If a bank has already told you no, that is almost always because their policy did not fit your visa, not because you cannot be approved. With the right lender behind you, plenty of 491 holders get approved right now. Here is how we get you there, in three steps.
1. Match
We take your visa, your income, your deposit, your target region, and whether you are buying with an Australian partner or on your own, and run them through our VSL Matrix™ (Visa x Situation x Lender) to find the lenders whose policy already fits your situation. This is where we rule out the lenders who were always going to say no and zero in on the ones most likely to approve you, including the non-bank and specialist lenders who actively write 491 loans.
2. Apply
Once we know the right lender, we help you put your strongest application forward. We gather the right documents, structure everything the way that lender wants to see it, and explain your overseas funds and your 491 pathway in the terms a credit assessor needs. We also identify every grant, stamp duty concession, and FIRB step or exemption that applies, including confirming whether your joint purchase qualifies for the FIRB joint-tenancy exemption.
3. Purchase
You get your pre-approval, then your formal approval, and you move forward knowing the finance is sorted. Because your 491 is provisional and your 191 permanent residency is coming, we choose lenders and loan products that serve you now and set you up to refinance or borrow again once your PR is granted.
Our service is free to you. We are paid by the lender when your loan settles, so there is no cost and no obligation for the advice, the assessment, or the application.
And if it turns out you are not quite ready to buy today, you will not leave empty-handed. You will get a clear roadmap and timeline showing exactly what needs to happen to get you loan-ready.
Yes. The strongest and most common path is buying with an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or New Zealand partner as joint tenants for your home to live in. On that route you can borrow up to 95% of the property value (a 5% deposit), the FIRB joint-tenancy exemption can apply, and you can buy an established home. Buying on your own is possible too: 80% LVR, FIRB applies, and new dwellings only.
Yes, if you buy with your Australian partner under the FIRB joint-tenancy exemption. Buying on your own, no: the established-dwelling ban (in place since 1 April 2025, and since extended) limits solo temporary residents to new dwellings, off-the-plan, or vacant land to build on. The restriction also lifts once you transition to permanent residency through the 191 visa.
Not in your own right: the First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) is for Australian citizens and permanent residents. But several states allow it for a couple where one partner is a citizen or permanent resident, usually for a new dwelling. We can tell you what is available in your target location.
Buying with an Australian or permanent resident partner? That joint route is the strongest position available, and our partner visa home loan guide covers it in full. Different visa subclass? We cover the full specialist panel, including 482/TSS visa home loans, 494 visa home loans, and bridging visa home loans, with the rules tuned to each visa.
Request an exploratory chat about your options and how to secure fast home loan approval, at a competitive rate – even if you don’t have a 20% deposit.
Written & reviewed by Craig Vaughan, Director & Mortgage BrokerMFAA 47419 · Credit Representative 577691Last reviewed
EuniceTemporary resident guided step by step
The team at MAP Home Loans accepted my case and guided me through it. They were extremely easy to deal with and very helpful in the whole process. My broker was very reliable and quick when it came to responding to my email and phone call. My broker even came to my house at dinner time just to explain everything to me. As a temporary resident, MAP Home Loans really understood my situation and guided me step by step in the process. I would recommend their service to anyone I know. Thank you.
Amy AnsticeSecured the right loan with a temporary-resident partner
MAP Home Loans was fantastic at providing us with advice and walking us through every step of the way when we bought our first place. My broker was a great communicator, making the process easy and seamless. With my partner being a temporary resident, he was able to help us secure the loan that was right for us. We would highly recommend MAP Home Loans and would definitely use them again. Thank you!
Cathy and LeighTemporary visa holder approved after banks said no
MAP Home Loans organised our home loan for us over 2 years ago. I am a UK citizen and my hubby is an NZ citizen, we live in Australia. I am a temporary visa holder entitled to a mortgage and hubby is a permanent resident. We went to the banks, and other brokers over a number of months, but it seems that as our case was not straight forward, nobody wanted to help because either they couldn’t be bothered or they just didn’t know the Australian financial system. I typed a plea into Google and top of the search results was MAP Home Loans advertising that they could help with temporary visa holder or the more complicated loans. I rang as a last resort and my broker rang me straight back. He was totally aware of our situation and understood and explained why we were having problems and then proceeded to advise the bank that we are now with, that they were able to lend us the money, to which both we and the bank were extremely grateful. He is very knowledgeable, got things sorted quickly and easily and to be quite honest is our saviour! I’m not a big review writer, but I felt this was well deserved. My broker has recently helped us again saving more money on our mortgage repayments, and we are looking to work with him again in the very near future as we are looking to purchase an investment property.
ErinFirst home approved as a non-resident
Exceptional service! I would recommend the team at MAP Home Loans to anyone looking to secure a mortgage, especially non-Australian residents. My broker explained everything to us and ensured we had all the necessary documents for the bank, meaning we got approval the first time we applied. There is no way we would have purchased our first home without my broker’s help. Thanks again!
Elena and DarrinBought our dream house $400,000 under asking
Excellent service and superb attention to detail! A pleasure to deal with and helpful all the way; someone who ALWAYS rings back, a rarity these days! It’s the third property we financed with MAP Home Loans, and even though it took us a whole year to find the right home for us, my broker kept our pre-approval status up to date and we could shop with ease, knowing we could offer a cash deal and get a big discount to the asking price or bid at auctions. Eventually we bought our dream house $400,000 under the asking price from a vendor who needed out with a 30-day cash offer (and he rejected an offer $220,000 higher just a few months before, it’s all about timing!) Getting a pre-approval was the key to being able to buy the house we never thought we could afford. You’d never think a mortgage broker could be so instrumental in getting a great property deal, but now we know better! 🙂 We highly recommend MAP Home Loans as the place to get the right advice and the right home loan.
KhangPre-approval to offer accepted in a week
Reached out to MAP Home Loans on a whim to see where I was sitting at financially and see how much work it would be to get the ball rolling on buying a home. At the time I was really only considering the idea of buying and was not entirely convinced I wanted to yet.
My broker was more than willing to book in some time for us to discuss and help me dip my toes in the water. Missus and I decided to go to some open homes in an area we wanted to move to just purely to see how nice the apartments were and we ended up finding one that essentially ticked every box we had for a new home.
Reached back out that very weekend to let my broker know we found a place we really liked and he arranged everything required to start an application in less than a week.
Pre-approval came through with no issues and we were able to make an offer, which we got!Appreciate his quick work in getting us across the line! Would definitely recommend to others going forward.
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