A calm checklist for the week you go unconditional

Your agreement is the list that matters. A blog can only name conditions people often see. The full outline is Buying your first home, step by step. Your lawyer reads the dates on your copy.

Before you treat the week as a formality

Ask your lawyer which conditions are still open, which have been satisfied, and which would be waived if you say you are ready. Ask what the dates are. Ask what happens if a date is missed. Those answers come from your agreement, not from a standard template.

Pressure from a seller, an agent, or a group chat is not one of the conditions. You can still ask for the time the agreement gives you. This site does not tell you to hurry, and it does not tell you to walk away. It tells you to know which is which before the week gets noisy.

Finance, including pre-approval

If finance is a condition, pre-approval does not cross it off. Lenders commonly still want the property to be acceptable, and they may want a valuation. Final checks can include income, debts, and documents that have changed since the first conversation. How long pre-approval lasts once you have it: usually valid for 90 days, but it pays to check with your lender. Getting pre-approval is a different timing: about 5 to 10 working days as a guide. The plain version is on the pre-approval page.

Questions for that week:

• Has the lender seen this property, not just your income?
• Is any valuation back, and does anyone need to explain a gap between the price and the valuation?
• Has the lender confirmed how long this letter lasts? Usually 90 days, but it pays to check with your lender.
• Has anyone described a rate as locked? If they have, ask them to show the condition in writing. Pre-approval itself does not lock a rate, and this site does not quote one.
• If your job, your debts, or your savings have changed, has the lender been told?

A First Home Loan, if that is the path, still needs the participating lender's final approval as well as the scheme rules. The scheme page is Kāinga Ora's, not ours. A comparison is on the First Home Loan page.

Reports and title

People often see a building report, a LIM, and a title check as conditions. Yours may not include all of them. If they are in your agreement, this is the week to know what came back.

• Has your lawyer seen the title, and is there anything they want you to understand before you go further?
• Has the LIM been ordered and read, or is it still on its way?
• Has a building report been done, and have you had a chance to ask what the findings mean?
• If you are thinking of waiving a report you have not received, has your lawyer explained what you would be giving up?

An auction or a tender may already have left you with fewer conditions. If so, this list is a reminder of what to have checked earlier, not a lecture.

KiwiSaver and the rest of the deposit

If KiwiSaver is part of the price, your scheme provider and your lawyer need to be lined up before settlement, not after it. Kāinga Ora says an approved first-home withdrawal is paid to your solicitor on or before settlement day. It is not paid to you to spend. The rules and timing are at KiwiSaver first-home withdrawal.

Questions:

• Has the provider confirmed they have the application, or are you still assuming?
• Does your lawyer know the settlement date the provider is working to?
• Are savings and any gift documented in the way the lender asked?
• Are you still describing a closed grant as part of the money? New First Home Grant applications closed on 22 May 2024. Do not leave a hole where that money is not coming.

Insurance and the practical week

Many lenders ask for proof of insurance before settlement. Ask yours whether they do, and from which date. This guide does not state a legal deadline, because that sits with the lender and the agreement.

Ask your lawyer what else they need from you that week, including identification and where the rest of the money is coming from. Moving details can wait until those legal steps are clear.

If something is not ready

Say so while a condition is still open. A missing document, a late report, or a KiwiSaver application only just sent are reasons to talk to your lawyer before you agree a condition is satisfied. Waiving something because the calendar feels tight is a legal decision, not a small admin task.

A soft next step

If the open question is about the loan, a home loan specialist can look at your file with you. That is not a promise the lender will extend a date, and it is not this site's advice. The get started page is the match, when you want it.

Online Mortgages shares general information for first home buyers in New Zealand. It is not financial advice, and it is not a lender. Rules, eligibility, and products change. Check the current position with the relevant provider before you act.

FAQ

Does going unconditional mean the bank has definitely approved the loan?

Only if a finance condition was actually satisfied, in the way your agreement and your lender describe. Pre-approval is not that final yes. Ask your lawyer which conditions are done, and ask the lender what they have approved for this property.

Can I sort KiwiSaver after settlement if the week is busy?

No. The withdrawal is for the purchase. Kāinga Ora says approved funds are paid to your solicitor on or before settlement day. If you miss that, you have missed the window providers describe. This page does not give you a number of days to allow. Ask your provider and your lawyer.

What if I waive the building report to keep the seller happy?

This site does not tell you to waive a condition. If a report is one of your conditions, your lawyer can explain what it means to let it go before you have it. Seller pressure is not a substitute for that conversation.