Kāinga Ora Lenders Mortgage Insurance Fee Estimator
Estimate your Kāinga Ora First Home Loan Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) fee
Buying With a 5% Deposit?
The Kāinga Ora First Home Loan scheme is an incredible way to get into the New Zealand property market with as little as a 5% deposit. To make this possible, Kāinga Ora applies a one-off Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) fee. This calculator helps you estimate exactly what that fee will be.
It is 100% free to view your estimates with no mandatory sign-ups, logins, or hidden data capture.
1. What is the KO LMI Fee?
- The Enabler: Because a 5% deposit is considered higher risk, this insurance fee is what gives the bank the safety and confidence to approve your loan. Think of it as the cost of admission to get into your first home years earlier than you otherwise could.
- The 1.2% Premium: Kāinga Ora charges a flat 1.2% LMI premium on the total loan amount. For example, if you borrow $500,000, the fee is $6,000.
2. How Do You Pay It?
- The good news is you rarely have to pay this fee out of your own pocket in cash. The bank simply 'capitalises' the fee (adds it directly to your total mortgage balance) so you pay it off gradually over the life of the loan.
Next Step: Let's Check Your Eligibility
While this calculator gives you the maths, the First Home Loan scheme has strict income and eligibility criteria. Send your numbers to a Home Loan Factory adviser, and we will check if you qualify and manage the entire Kāinga Ora pre-approval process for you—completely free of charge.
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