Budget Planner

Add up what comes in and what goes out each month, and see what is left.
The same numbers are what a lender looks at when it decides how much you can borrow.

Want a more accurate result?

Calculator results are estimates only. A broker can check how lenders are likely to read your expenses before you apply, so the number you see is the number they use.
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What this planner works out

A budget is four numbers. Most people know the first one exactly and underestimate the second. The planner puts all four in one place.

Money coming in

Take-home pay, plus any other regular income such as rent, benefits or a second job, converted to the same period so everything can be added up.

Living expenses

Groceries, utilities, transport, insurance, phone, childcare, school costs, subscriptions and everything irregular, such as car registration or annual bills, spread across the year.

Existing commitments

Repayments on anything you already owe: a car loan, a personal loan, buy now pay later, and the limit on every credit card, whether or not it is used.

What is left

Income less expenses and commitments. This surplus is what pays for savings, extra repayments, and any new loan.
If the surplus is smaller than you expected, the usual cause is irregular costs. Spreading annual bills across the months is the single biggest improvement most budgets need.

How a lender reads your budget

When you apply for a home loan, the lender is required to make reasonable enquiries about your expenses and check that you can afford the repayments. Your budget becomes part of that assessment, under ASIC’s responsible lending guidance.
The surplus a lender works with

= net income − the higher of (declared expenses, benchmark) − existing commitments − new repayment at the assessment rate

If the result is above zero, with any buffer the lender requires, the loan is generally considered affordable on the numbers. Each lender sets its own policy inside its responsible lending obligations.
Two things about that are worth pausing on.

First, many lenders compare your declared expenses with a benchmark, commonly the Household Expenditure Measure, and use the higher of the two. Listing expenses that are unrealistically low does not help; the benchmark simply replaces them.

Second, lenders test the new repayment at a rate at least 3 percentage points above the one you would actually pay, the serviceability buffer APRA expects, to allow for rates rising. That is why the surplus a lender works with is usually smaller than the one your own budget shows.

What your monthly surplus can support

An illustrative guide only. Each card shows the loan a given monthly surplus would repay over 30 years if the lender tested it at an assumed 9 per cent assessment rate. The 9 per cent is roughly a 6 per cent loan plus the 3 percentage point buffer. Real lender policies differ, and this is not a borrowing power estimate; the borrowing power calculator is the closer guide.

$500 surplus

Supports roughly
$62,100 of borrowing
over 30 years at the assumed assessment rate

$1,000 surplus

Supports roughly
$124,300 of borrowing
over 30 years at the assumed assessment rate

$1,500 surplus

Supports roughly
$186,400 of borrowing
over 30 years at the assumed assessment rate

$2,000 surplus

Supports roughly
$248,600 of borrowing
over 30 years at the assumed assessment rate

$2,500 surplus

Supports roughly
$310,700 of borrowing
over 30 years at the assumed assessment rate
Read the cards as a ratio. On these assumptions every $100 a month of surplus supports about $12,400 of borrowing. It works both ways: a $100 monthly expense you cut adds that much, and a $100 monthly commitment you take on removes it.

Worked example: the same household, two readings

The figures below are illustrative and are not a borrowing power estimate or an offer. They show how the arithmetic behaves. The benchmark figure is invented for the example.

A household takes home $9,000 a month and has a $600 a month car loan.

Reading 1: declared expenses of $3,800
Suppose the lender’s benchmark for this household is $4,300. The benchmark is higher, so $4,300 is used.
Surplus: $9,000 − $4,300 − $600 = $4,100. At the assumed assessment rate, that supports roughly $509,600.

Reading 2: the car loan is cleared first
Surplus: $9,000 − $4,300 = $4,700, supporting roughly $584,100.

Clearing the $600 a month commitment adds about $74,600 of borrowing capacity. Declaring $500 less in expenses, on the other hand, added nothing, because the benchmark was used instead.
This is why an accurate budget, with irregular costs included and small debts cleared, is one of the most useful things to do before you apply. It will not change the benchmark, but it can change which figure is higher.

What the planner does not show you

A budget shows your cash flow. A lender’s assessment adds these, and each one can move the answer.

Credit card limits

Lenders usually count a monthly commitment against the full limit of every credit card, even one you pay off in full. Reducing or closing unused limits can free up borrowing power. If your credit file needs attention first, see credit check and repair.

The assessment rate

The repayment on a new loan is tested at a rate above the actual rate. Your budget should allow for the real repayment, but expect the lender to use a higher one.

Income the lender discounts

Overtime, bonuses, commission and rental income are often counted only in part, and self-employed income is usually averaged over one or two years.

Costs after you buy

Council rates, water, strata and insurance on the new home, plus maintenance, are new expenses. Add them to the plan now so the budget you test is the budget you will live on. The property buying cost calculator covers the upfront side.

Before you apply for a loan

Gather three months of bank and card statements and check your plan against what you actually spent, category by category. Include irregular bills, clear or close small debts you no longer need, and keep the plan updated. Then use the borrowing power calculator to see what that surplus could support.
Related tools on this site: borrowing power calculator, loan repayment calculator, Australian income tax calculator and savings goal calculator. Getting ready to buy? See first home buyer loans, or home loans in Adelaide if you are buying in South Australia.
Sources
Australian Securities and Investments Commission: Regulatory Guide 209, Credit licensing: responsible lending conduct.
Herbert Smith Freehills: Analysis of the updated RG 209, on benchmarks such as HEM and the common practice of using the higher of declared expenses and the benchmark.
Australian Prudential Regulation Authority: Macroprudential policy settings, 28 May 2026, on the 3 percentage point serviceability buffer.
Australian Government, ASIC Moneysmart: Budget planner and How to do a budget.

About the figures on this page. Loan amounts were calculated from the standard amortisation formula over 30 years at an assumed 9 per cent assessment rate. Household figures and the benchmark amount are illustrative only; actual Household Expenditure Measure figures vary by household type and are not published here.

Important information about this calculator. This planner totals the income, expenses and commitments you enter and shows the surplus. The borrowing figures on this page are illustrations of a ratio, not a borrowing power assessment. A lender’s decision depends on its own policy, verification of your income and expenses, your credit history and its responsible lending obligations. Results are estimates only and are not an offer of credit or a recommendation.

General information only. Nothing on this page takes your objectives, financial situation or needs into account. Loanity is a credit representative and can provide credit assistance once we understand your circumstances.
STILL GOT QUESTIONS?

Budget planner questions, answered

How do I make a monthly budget?

List your take-home income, then every expense, including irregular ones spread across the year, and every existing repayment. Subtract the expenses and repayments from income. What is left is your surplus. The planner above does the adding up.

Living costs such as food, utilities, transport, insurance, childcare and education, plus existing commitments such as car loans, personal loans, buy now pay later and credit card limits. Lenders also check bank statements to see whether the figures are realistic.

A benchmark of typical living costs for different household types, used by many lenders. It is commonly compared with your declared expenses, and the higher of the two is often used in the assessment. ASIC’s guidance treats benchmarks as a check on plausibility rather than a substitute for asking about your actual spending.

Not if they are unrealistic. Where the benchmark is higher, it is usually used instead, and lenders check statements. Understating expenses can also leave you with a loan that is harder to live with.

Usually yes. Lenders tend to count a monthly commitment based on the full card limit, even if you clear the balance each month. Lowering or closing limits you do not need can help.

There is no single rule. Lenders work from your actual surplus after expenses and commitments, tested at a rate at least 3 percentage points higher than your loan rate. Moneysmart suggests checking what your costs would be if rates rose by 3 per cent before you commit.

Yes. Car registration, insurance, school costs, gifts and annual subscriptions are real expenses. Divide each yearly cost by 12 and add it to the monthly plan.

Roughly the loan amount a repayment of that size could have supported. On the illustrative assumptions on this page, a $600 a month car repayment removes about $74,600 of home loan borrowing capacity.

Whenever income, rent, rates or a regular bill changes, and at least every few months. Before a loan application, check it against three months of actual statements.

We do not charge you a fee for arranging your finance. Brokers are generally paid a commission by the lender when a loan settles. If any fee from us would ever apply to your situation, you would be told in writing before you proceeded.