No Permanent Job.
Approved Anyway on Fixed-Term Contract Income.

The problem.

Aaron, a 38-year-old senior software contractor, had worked continuously in Wellington's public and private sector IT market for 6 years — but always on 12-month fixed-term contracts, renewed or replaced with a new contract each time, never gaps of more than a week or two between them.

His own bank's assessor told him plainly: "We need to see permanent employment to lend at your income level." Despite earning $145,000 annually and having a strong 20% deposit saved, he was offered a borrowing capacity roughly 30% below what a permanent employee on the same income would receive — his contract income was being heavily shaded as though it were unreliable.

Aaron found this frustrating given his continuous 6-year track record was, in his view, more stable than many permanent roles in a shrinking tech sector. He came to Finch to see if that history could actually be recognised properly.

How we solved it.

The result.

Aaron's pre-approval came through in 18 days at $610,000 — roughly $140,000 more than his own bank had offered on the same income. He purchased a 2-bedroom townhouse in Johnsonville for $595,000, well-positioned for his commute into the CBD.

His loan was fixed 18 months at 5.79%, chosen deliberately to realign with his next likely contract renewal date, at which point Finch will revisit his structure and refix.

Aaron's feedback: "I've been more consistently employed than most of my permanent-role friends, but my bank couldn't see past the word 'contract' on my payslip. Finch found lenders who actually looked at the pattern, not just the label."

Useful NZ sources: the Reserve Bank of New Zealand for current lending policy, and Kāinga Ora for first-home support schemes.