HOME > INSIGHTS & BLOG

Property finance, in plain English

Guides and straight answers from the Rivo team — no jargon, no sales pitch, just what we'd tell a friend.

First Home Buyers• 7 min read•7 July 2026

The First Home Buyer's Guide to Sydney: What You Actually Need to Know in 2026

If you've ever closed a property app at 11pm feeling further from a home than when you opened it, this guide is for you. Buying your first home in Sydney is genuinely hard — but most of what makes it feel impossible is jargon, not reality. Let's clear it up, in plain English.

Arun Rizal

Principal Mortgage Broker

Read article

How Broking Works 5 min read

Is a Mortgage Broker Really Free? Here's Exactly How We Get Paid

It's the question every smart borrower asks — usually with one eyebrow raised: 'If your service is free, what's the catch?' Fair question. Nobody works for nothing, and an industry that says 'free' without explaining itself deserves your suspicion. So here's the full answer, with nothing left out.

Amit Kumar Basnet

Read article

Loan Structure 6 min read

Fixed vs Variable Home Loans, Explained Plainly

"Should I fix my rate?" might be the most-Googled home loan question in Australia — and most of what comes back is either rate speculation dressed up as advice, or a shrug. Here's what actually matters: how each option works, what each one costs you in flexibility, and why the right answer depends far more on your life than on where rates go next.

Arun Rizal

Read article

Refinancing 5 min read

The Loyalty Tax: What Staying With Your Lender Could Be Costing You

Here's a pattern the mortgage industry doesn't advertise: the customers who get the sharpest rates are the ones walking in the door — not the ones who've faithfully paid on time for eight years. Regulators have studied it, economists have named it, and if your loan is more than a couple of years old, you may be paying it right now. It's called the loyalty tax.

Amit Kumar Basnet

Read article

First Home Buyers 6 min read

Buying With a Small Deposit: Guarantors, Guarantee Schemes and LMI, Explained

Saving a Sydney-sized deposit can feel like chasing a train that's already moving — every year you save, prices may move further than your savings did. What most buyers don't realise is that there isn't one door into home ownership; there are at least three, and they open at very different deposit levels.

Arun Rizal

Read article

Personalised Australian Lending Advice

Have questions about your borrowing capacity?

Connect with an accredited Rivo Lending mortgage broker for a 100% free, no-obligation loan assessment across our panel of 30+ Australian lenders.

Book Free Assessment Call 0451 178 375