This article is sponsored by Suncorp, steering first home buyers and investment hunters in the right direction. Read more here. »

For many young Australians, the prospects of buying a first home — let alone an investment property — is far out of reach. At least, that’s the perception many of us have without actually doing our homework.

As the government continues to offer incentives to first home buyers in an effort to invigorate the property market, the ablity to earn a mortgage might not be as farfetched as you would think.

Geotechnical Engineer Brad is a 27-year-old who has been steadily working in his field for upwards of four years. He bought his first home a year ago in regional Victoria, as he was offered a 20% first home buyers’ grant — in metro Victoria, that percentage goes down to 10%.

After sitting on the house for the first 12 months — which is the minimum time you have to live in a property if you’ve accepted the tax exemption, Brad moved back into his parents’ place so he could rent out his home and start saving for an investment property.

It sounds easy enough but, as Brad said, there were “heaps of hurdles”.

“Because I’m a single guy, getting a loan was harder than I thought,” he admitted. “I had more than enough of the deposit for the areas I was looking at but it was still difficult.”

Undeterred, Brad went through the motions until he was eventually a property owner. The process will differ for everyone depending on the area you’re looking to buy, how much you have upfront and whether or not you choose a broker, but the rough trajectory is as follows.

Saving for a deposit

“I had about a 15% deposit in my savings when I properly started looking at places online,” Brad explains. “It took me three to four years of budgeting but I wasn’t particularly strict about it — I was lucky I was staying at my family home when I was saving, so that obviously sped up the process.

“If you’re renting, I’d guess it would take you twice as long, if not longer, to save for a deposit depending on your salary.”

The discrepancies among young Australians, salary-wise, is why it’s almost impossible to have a one-size-fits-all approach to buying a house.

In 2018, the average weekly earnings for a young Aussie aged between 21 and 34 was $1,127.60, as reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Depending on your own salary, how much rent you’re paying and your weekly spending habits, it could take a minimum of 10 years to save for a 20% deposit in Melbourne; seven years for Perth and over 11 years for Sydney.

This might seem like a lifetime, however recent incentives have been introduced which give first home buyers’ a range of options, from skirting the bulk of stamp duty, to receiving $10,000 and $20,000 First Home Owner Grants.

Another recently introduced option which has seen a sharp increase in popularity is to put up a 5% home deposit — although, as Brad says, there’s a lot to be wary about.

“I looked at the 5% deposit but it seemed risky,” he said. “I wasn’t comfortable knowing I would have that much more to pay off over however long, so I held off and kept saving.”

Getting a loan

As Brad explained, applying for a home loan from a bank was an uphill battle — as a single-income earner, there’s a lot more at stake for the banks than twice the income paying off the same loan.

Brad credits the struggle to not being overly familiar with the process and going in unprepared.

For the best outcome when applying directly to a bank, it’s important to start discussions with your bank early in the process. Bank’s can provide useful information on the process and how much you may be able to loan even before you find your home. It’s also a good idea to have an understanding of your income and expense details, and make sure your credit score is in good shape. Banks may also conduct research into the property you’re looking to purchase to ensure it’s a feasible transaction.

Finding a broker

After struggling to decide on a loan directly, Brad hunted around for a mortgage broker who essentially act as the middle-man between the applicant and the banks.

Mortgage brokers are a good choice for anyone who’s new to the property market, as they’ll have the tools to determine how much you’ll ideally need to save, help you achieve your own goals and walk you through the ins and outs of home loans, explaining terms like fixed variables in a manner you’ll understand.

It also takes a lot of the busywork out of your hands, which, as Brad said, was “the most stressful part of the whole thing”.

If you decide to use a mortgage broker, your best bet is to go off word of mouth — if someone you know has dealt with a certain company before and have had a positive experience, you’re less likely to be taken for a ride.

While this is a good kickoff point to get you into the mindset that owning a house someday is attainable, you should still ask around and speak to everyone you know to build up as much information as possible.

“My Dad was really helpful during all of this and I trusted his opinion because he’s a cautious guy, and at that stage none of my mates were in a position where I could ask them for advice,” Brad said.

You can read up on everything from interest rates to home loan applications and mortgage brokers here.

Follow Business Insider Australia on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.