# First-home couple with a 25% deposit

Home lending · Borrower profiles · P11

A salaried first-home couple with about a 25% deposit and little mortgage experience; matched to the 10%-deposit case except for deposit size.

[Back to the study](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending#borrowers)

| Measure | Value |
| --- | --- |
| questions | 17 |
| captured answers | 90 |
| AI platforms | 4 |
| collected | 11 Oct 2026 |

## Read what this borrower asked.

### HL-Q077: Borrower journey

My partner and I want to buy our first home. We both have salaried jobs and about a 25% deposit. What should we work out before we start looking for a mortgage?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q077.md)

### HL-Q078: Choosing a loan

We're a couple buying our first home. We both have salaried jobs, about a 25% deposit and little experience with mortgages. Which lenders would you suggest we talk to first, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q078.md)

### HL-Q079: Borrower journey

We're buying our first home with about a 25% deposit, but don't know much about home loans. Is it worth using a mortgage adviser, or should we compare banks ourselves?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q079.md)

### HL-Q080: Borrower journey

We're a salaried couple buying our first home with about a 25% deposit. We want steady repayments but also the option to pay extra. What should we compare when choosing a loan?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q080.md)

### HL-Q081: Borrower journey

We're both salaried and getting ready to apply for our first home loan with about a 25% deposit. What should we prepare before applying?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q081.md)

### HL-Q082: Borrower journey

We've found our first home and have conditional pre-approval. We have about a 25% deposit. What still needs to be confirmed before we commit to the house?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q082.md)

### HL-Q084: Borrower journey

We've just bought our first home and have some savings left over. How do we decide whether to keep them handy or use them to pay down the mortgage?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q084.md)

### HL-Q194: Choosing a loan

We're a salaried couple buying our first home with about a 25% deposit and little experience with mortgages. Which lenders would you recommend for our home loan, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q194.md)

### HL-Q195: Choosing a loan

What's the best bank for a first home loan if we're a salaried couple with about a 25% deposit?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q195.md)

### HL-Q196: Choosing a loan

best bank for first home buyers with 25% deposit

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q196.md)

### HL-Q197: Borrower priorities

We're a salaried couple buying our first home with about a 25% deposit and little experience with mortgages. What matters most to us is keeping the total cost as low as possible. Which lenders would you recommend for our home loan, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q197.md)

### HL-Q198: Borrower priorities

We're a salaried couple buying our first home with about a 25% deposit and little experience with mortgages. What matters most to us is being able to pay extra or change our repayments when we need to. Which lenders would you recommend for our home loan, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q198.md)

### HL-Q199: Borrower priorities

We're a salaried couple buying our first home with about a 25% deposit and little experience with mortgages. What matters most to us is getting good help and advice when we need it. Which lenders would you recommend for our home loan, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q199.md)

### HL-Q200: Support after purchase

We're a salaried couple who recently bought our first home with about a 25% deposit, and we're still learning how our mortgage works. Which lenders are best at looking after mortgage customers in our situation, and why?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q200.md)

### HL-Q201: Support after purchase

We bought our first home last year with about a 25% deposit and we're both on salaries. Our bank is hard to get clear answers from about our mortgage. Are some banks better at helping first-home owners, and would it be worth moving?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q201.md)

### HL-Q202: Support after purchase

Which bank has the best mortgage customer service for first-home owners who bought with about a 25% deposit?

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q202.md)

### HL-Q203: Support after purchase

best bank mortgage support first home owners 25% deposit

[Read the captured answers](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q203.md)

## Which lenders AI put in front of this borrower

The national loan-choice and support answers, with the lenders each assistant recommended.

| Lender or party | Answers | Total |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BNZ | 25 | 31 |
| ASB | 24 | 31 |
| Kiwibank | 23 | 31 |
| ANZ | 21 | 31 |
| SBS | 21 | 31 |
| Westpac | 20 | 31 |
| Co-operative | 18 | 31 |
| TSB | 5 | 31 |

## Which lenders AI recommended for the loan.

National choice answers for this borrower. Open a lender to read the evidence.

| Topic | Lender or party | Recommended or named answers | Collected answers | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| First home · 25% deposit | ANZ | 16 | 16 | 20 | 13 | 2 | 3 |
| First home · 25% deposit | ASB | 16 | 16 | 23 | 11 | 1 | 3 |
| First home · 25% deposit | BNZ | 14 | 16 | 24 | 9 | 1 | 3 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Kiwibank | 14 | 16 | 24 | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| First home · 25% deposit | SBS | 14 | 16 | 35 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Westpac | 14 | 16 | 20 | 10 | 1 | 2 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Co-operative | 10 | 16 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| First home · 25% deposit | TSB | 3 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Who AI recommended for ongoing support.

National support answers for this borrower, after the lending decision.

| Topic | Lender or party | Recommended or named answers | Collected answers | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| First home · 25% deposit | BNZ | 11 | 15 | 49 | 7 | 2 | 0 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Kiwibank | 9 | 15 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| First home · 25% deposit | ASB | 8 | 15 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 1 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Co-operative | 8 | 15 | 25 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| First home · 25% deposit | SBS | 7 | 15 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| First home · 25% deposit | Westpac | 6 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| First home · 25% deposit | ANZ | 5 | 15 | 14 | 8 | 2 | 1 |
| First home · 25% deposit | TSB | 2 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## The reasoning behind the recommendations.

AI describes the stronger-deposit household as having more room to negotiate. ANZ and ASB appear in every national choice answer, and BNZ, Kiwibank, SBS and Westpac each appear in fourteen. The recurring narrative is comparing special pricing, cash contributions, flexibility and the quality of first-home guidance.

SBS appears twice as often as for the 10%-deposit couple: fourteen of sixteen choice answers versus seven of sixteen. Co-operative also becomes more frequent. In individual answers, either challenger can receive an explicit first-home preference even where the major banks have a higher overall inclusion frequency.

After purchase, BNZ leads the support comparison and Kiwibank follows. The matched deposit contrast therefore does more than change a list of names. It moves the acquisition narrative from access and low-equity costs toward bargaining power, while still leaving the new owners with education and service needs. Four wording variants help show the distinction between repeated inclusion and an explicit top recommendation in a particular answer.

ChatGPT: “Worth getting a competing offer from, particularly if you already bank with ANZ or want to negotiate a package around your income and deposit.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q195.md) · Answer ID: b5d965a3-fedc-48c2-8278-45aa29a2e4c1

Gemini: “SBS Bank has been widely recognized—including winning Canstar's Bank of the Year for First Home Buyers—for tailoring its products specifically to people entering the market.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q194.md) · Answer ID: 81f57b34-37fd-4ee3-a8b6-f53485a58f76

Google AI Mode: “They also offer specialized green/sustainable home loan top-up upgrades at low or zero interest if you plan to add heat pumps, double glazing, or solar panels later.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q078.md) · Answer ID: 805b3001-e654-4cbc-8748-d7ddb6b94e28

AI Overviews: “Kiwibank enforces a stricter 4-year clawback.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q196.md) · Answer ID: b15e0008-9df4-4c10-a02e-136b128166f8

ChatGPT: “2. Compare your next refix with two alternatives. I'd start with BNZ and SBS Bank, and include The Co-operative Bank if customer service is a priority.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q200.md) · Answer ID: 0949cd9b-e7c3-4d08-bcd1-39ca4c278d26

Gemini: “They frequently offer competitive green home loan top-up options (low-interest lending for sustainable home upgrades like solar panels or double glazing).”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q203.md) · Answer ID: 2a96faf4-1777-4ce4-8803-5f093df3dce0

Google AI Mode: “Their mobile banking apps and online dashboard tools for managing split fixed terms, extra repayments, and revolving credit accounts are slick and mature.”

[Read the answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/editions/1/questions/HL-Q200.md) · Answer ID: fb0b28ec-65b2-4812-b6a3-aef556280f10

## Where the answers to this borrower came from

The websites each assistant drew on, and what kind of publisher they are. Pick a question group to compare the websites.

### ChatGPT

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| canstar.co.nz | 14 |
| bnz.co.nz | 13 |
| consumer.org.nz | 8 |
| sorted.org.nz | 7 |
| consumerprotection.govt.nz | 6 |
| kiwibank.co.nz | 6 |
| fma.govt.nz | 5 |
| rbnz.govt.nz | 5 |
| westpac.co.nz | 5 |
| anz.co.nz | 3 |

### Gemini

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| canstar.co.nz | 14 |
| opespartners.co.nz | 6 |
| simpler.co.nz | 4 |
| bnz.co.nz | 3 |
| co-operativebank.co.nz | 3 |
| moneyhub.co.nz | 3 |
| westpac.co.nz | 3 |
| calculate.co.nz | 2 |
| canterburyhomeloans.co.nz | 2 |
| finance.co.nz | 2 |

### Google AI Mode

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| canstar.co.nz | 8 |
| moneyhub.co.nz | 8 |
| squirrel.co.nz | 4 |
| consumer.org.nz | 3 |
| kaingaora.govt.nz | 3 |
| westpac.co.nz | 3 |
| bnz.co.nz | 2 |
| co-operativebank.co.nz | 2 |
| asb.co.nz | 1 |
| facebook.com | 1 |

### AI Overviews

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| moneyhub.co.nz | 14 |
| canstar.co.nz | 9 |
| squirrel.co.nz | 7 |
| facebook.com | 5 |
| simpler.co.nz | 5 |
| trademe.co.nz | 5 |
| become.nz | 4 |
| bnz.co.nz | 4 |
| finchmortgages.co.nz | 4 |
| mortgagesuite.co.nz | 4 |

A website counts once per answer, however many claims cite it. 84 of 90 answers have recorded sources.

[Previous: Separating household seeking to retain the home](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/borrowers/p10)

[Next: Owners financing a $60,000 renovation](https://nzbrands.ai/research/banking/home-lending/borrowers/p12)