Jacques Pitts Financial Adviser - Mortgages

Jacques Pitts Financial Adviser - Mortgages Arranging Finance and securing the best loan shouldn't keep you up at night - That's where I come in.

I do the legwork for you and utilise my relationship with the lenders to get you the best deal.

Renting vs buying. What's actually stopping you?I ask a lot of first home buyers this, and the answer almost always come...
08/09/2026

Renting vs buying. What's actually stopping you?

I ask a lot of first home buyers this, and the answer almost always comes down to one of three things: not enough deposit, not sure what they can borrow, or just not knowing where to start. None of those is a full stop; they're just the next thing to sort out, usually in one conversation, not months of guessing.

Drop a comment below- which one is it for you? I'll reply to every single one.

You don't need a 20% deposit to buy your first home.I say this to someone new almost every week, and most people look at...
04/09/2026

You don't need a 20% deposit to buy your first home.

I say this to someone new almost every week, and most people look at me like I've made it up. With the right lender and the right structure, a 5% deposit can be enough; KiwiSaver, low-deposit lending, and a few lender-specific options can all play a part, and every bank assesses this differently.

The tricky part isn't the deposit; it's knowing which lenders offer this and whether you qualify. That's the bit I sort out, not you. If renting feels like it's going nowhere, let's find out what's actually possible.

If renting feels like it's going nowhere, let's talk about what's actually possible for you. Call 027 301 7177 or send me a message.

One phone call. One refinance. $15,000 back in their pocket.A client came to me a few months back, tired of paying more ...
01/09/2026

One phone call. One refinance. $15,000 back in their pocket.

A client came to me a few months back, tired of paying more than they needed to- same house, same income; they just hadn't checked what else was out there in over three years.

We compared their rate against what was on the table, moved them to a lender who wanted their business, and it landed a 1% cash contribution on settlement, $15,000 straight into their account, on top of a better rate and lower repayments.

If your mortgage hasn't been reviewed in the last 12 months, there's a good chance you're leaving money on the table too.

Message me or call 027 301 7177.

You nailed the deposit. Plot twist: there's a second bill hiding behind it.So many first home buyers pour every ounce of...
27/08/2026

You nailed the deposit. Plot twist: there's a second bill hiding behind it.

So many first home buyers pour every ounce of energy into the deposit and completely forget there's a second, smaller pile of cash waiting in the wings. This is the bit that ambushes people in the final weeks before settlement, every single time.

Budget for: a building inspection (a few hundred dollars), a LIM report from the council, legal fees for your conveyancing, and building insurance that needs to be sorted before settlement, not the morning after. Then add moving costs and the inevitable "we need a fridge now, today" first-week spend. Most first home buyers should be holding back an extra $5,000-$8,000 beyond the deposit itself.

I'm not telling you this to scare you off. I'm telling you so you're not the person frantically calling me about a LIM report that's due Monday with zero savings left to pay for it.

Did you already know about all of these, or did one of them just ambush you?

Still googling the $10,000 First Home Grant? Stop. It left the building in 2024.I say this at least once a week: the Fir...
25/08/2026

Still googling the $10,000 First Home Grant? Stop. It left the building in 2024.

I say this at least once a week: the First Home Grant is gone. Scrapped in May 2024, funds redirected into social housing, and it is not coming back no matter how confidently that Facebook group tells you otherwise. If you've read a blog post, seen an old ad, or had a well-meaning aunty insist it's still around - that's outdated info doing the rounds, and it's worth double-checking with me before you build a savings plan on a myth.

Here's the actual good news, because there is some: what replaced it does more heavy lifting than the old grant ever managed. The Kainga Ora First Home Loan still gets eligible buyers in with as little as a 5% deposit, and your KiwiSaver withdrawal (after 3+ years) is still fully available and usually worth a lot more than $10,000 anyway.

The grant's dead. The path in isn't. Big difference.

What's the most outdated piece of home-buying advice you've heard lately?

Nobody hands first-home buyers a map. So here's mine.Most of the anxiety around buying your first home comes from not kn...
20/08/2026

Nobody hands first-home buyers a map. So here's mine.

Most of the anxiety around buying your first home comes from not knowing what stage you're actually at, or what's coming next. So here's the real sequence, start to finish, no jargon, just what happens and roughly when.

Save this one. You'll want to check back against it as you go.

Which stage are you at right now?

Everyone obsesses over deposits. Almost nobody asks me about debt-to-income (DTI) rules, and they can quietly cap what y...
18/08/2026

Everyone obsesses over deposits. Almost nobody asks me about debt-to-income (DTI) rules, and they can quietly cap what you can borrow just as hard as your deposit size does.

In plain English: banks generally can't lend owner-occupiers more than six times their gross income across most of their new lending. So if your household earns $120,000 combined, there's a practical ceiling on your total borrowing. New builds and some other eligible loans sit outside this restriction, which is one more reason I keep telling first home buyers to at least glance at new builds.

This is the number that quietly redraws "how much can I actually borrow," and it's completely invisible if you're just playing with deposit calculators online.

Had you even heard of DTI rules before now, or is this brand new to you?

14/08/2026

Real talk: I get asked about this one more than almost anything else. Can your family actually help you buy your first home?

Yes.

For many first home buyers, family can help by providing a financial gift that forms part of the deposit. It's a common option that can help bridge the gap to homeownership sooner, and every lender has its own requirements around how this works.

The important thing is getting the structure right from the start. I'll guide you through what's required, explain your options, and help make sure everything is set up correctly with the lender.

Would you consider accepting financial help from family to get into your first home, or would you rather do it entirely on your own?

Nearly 1 in 3 buyers this year were first home buyers. So, no, you haven't missed some secret boat.First home buyers mad...
11/08/2026

Nearly 1 in 3 buyers this year were first home buyers. So, no, you haven't missed some secret boat.

First home buyers made up around 28% of all property purchases in New Zealand in the first half of 2026. That's not a rounding error; that's close to a third of the entire market. It's the number I wish more people saw before they spiral into "everyone else is ahead of me" mode.

If you've quietly assumed everyone else sorted this out years ago and you've somehow missed your window, the numbers disagree with you. Stock is healthy across most regions, and lending settings have actually loosened over the past year, not tightened.

Here's the bit I really want you to hear: the people buying right now aren't necessarily earning more than you, or further ahead than you. Most of them just picked up the phone earlier than they thought they needed to.

What's the thing making you feel "behind" right now - deposit, income, or just timing?

Address

7/30 Willow Street
Tauranga
3110

Telephone

+64273017177

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