Short of money for your property settlement?

Settlement is booked, the removalists are paid, and your conveyancer has just sent a statement with a number that doesn’t match yours. Your stomach drops. It happens more often than people admit.

Here’s the fix in one breath: tell your conveyancer and lender now, nail the exact gap, and work through the fastest options. If the money can’t land in time, ask for a short extension in writing rather than hoping it sorts itself out.

Why am I short at settlement when my loan is approved?

A home loan approval isn’t the same as money in the account. Several things can open a gap in the final fortnight, and most aren’t anyone’s fault.

The usual suspects:

• The valuation came in under the price. Lenders lend against their valuer’s figure, not what you agreed to pay, so a low valuation shrinks the loan.
• The lender trimmed the amount after final checks on income, debts or the property itself.
• Adjustments. You reimburse the seller for council rates, water and sometimes strata levies they’ve prepaid past settlement.
• Duty and fees. Transfer duty, registration fees and lender charges add up. In Victoria, duty is usually paid at settlement, though there can be up to three months after to pay it. If duty is the problem, see our page on stamp duty.
• The sale of your old place is delayed, so the funds you were counting on aren’t there yet.

Our explainer on approval vs money in your account walks through every stage between “approved” and “settled”.

How much time do I usually have before settlement?

Less than it feels like at exchange. The NSW Government notes settlement usually takes place around six weeks after contracts are exchanged. Consumer Affairs Victoria says the seller sets the date, and it’s usually 30 to 90 days.

That window is your runway. Here’s how to use it when a shortfall appears.

Days to settlement	What to do
Two weeks or more	Ask the lender about a review or revaluation; line up family help or savings; explore bridging or equity options
One week	Lock in a funding route; send documents same day; brief your conveyancer daily
Two or three days	Only quick, property-backed funding is realistic; have your conveyancer raise an extension with the seller
Settlement day	Talk to your conveyancer about the contract terms and the seller’s likely response

The earlier you spot the gap, the more of the table you get to use. Pop your figures into the shortfall calculator to see where you stand.

What are the fastest ways to cover a settlement shortfall?

Rough order, from cheapest to quickest-but-pricier:

1. Savings or an offset account. Obvious, but check everything, including any spare redraw on an existing loan.
2. Your lender. Ask if they’ll review the valuation or increase the loan. Sometimes the answer is yes, it just takes days.
3. Family help. A gift or loan from family is common. Your lender may want a letter confirming it’s a gift.
4. A bridging loan. Built for buyers waiting on the sale of their current home. It covers the overlap until the sale settles.
5. Borrowing against other property. If you own a second property, a short-term second mortgage or caveat loan over it can sometimes be arranged in days. See caveat loans for people in a hurry and home equity, fast.

If you run a business and the purchase is for business or investment purposes, property-secured business loans from $20,000 to $5,000,000 may be an option, with $20k to $250k possibly funded the same day and larger amounts possibly within 24–48 hours. For a home you’ll live in, we’ll look at your situation and point you to a realistic route, but we won’t promise amounts or speed before anyone has seen the details.

What to have ready so funding isn’t the thing that’s late

When settlement is days away, the lender who gets complete paperwork first is the one who can move. Have these in one folder:

• The contract of sale and the settlement date.
• Your conveyancer’s settlement statement, showing the exact shortfall.
• Your home loan approval letter, including any conditions still outstanding.
• Details of any other property you own: address, what’s owing and a recent loan statement.
• ID and proof of income, so nobody has to chase you for them.
• Your exit plan, such as the sale of your old home, if you’re borrowing short-term.

Every missing item costs at least a phone call, and sometimes a day.

Running out of days? Start the 60-second shortfall check →

What happens if I can’t settle on time?

This is where the contract you signed matters most. Standard contracts generally let the seller charge late settlement interest for each day you’re late, and Victoria’s State Revenue Office even issues guidance on how that interest is treated for duty.

If the delay drags on, the seller can usually issue a formal notice setting a new deadline. Miss that, and you risk losing the deposit and facing a claim for the seller’s losses. The exact rules differ between states and contracts, so your conveyancer is the person to read yours.

What helps:

• Tell your conveyancer the moment you suspect a problem, not the night before.
• Ask for a short extension in writing, ideally with a firm new date.
• Show progress. Sellers are more flexible when they can see funding is genuinely on its way.

How do I find out if I qualify for settlement funding in time?

You’ve got the settlement statement, the gap figure and the date. That’s the full brief a lender needs.

Send one enquiry. There’s no credit check involved, which matters when your home loan is mid-settlement and you’d rather not stir up your file. Your details don’t get scattered across a crowd of lenders either. A real person reads it and calls you back with a realistic route.

Answer accurately, especially the settlement date and the exact shortfall. Under this kind of pressure, being matched correctly first go is the difference between settling and asking the seller for mercy.

See if you can close the gap →