AU Australia property term
APRA Serviceability Buffer
Australia-wide
Plain-English definition
The minimum interest-rate margin APRA-regulated banks add when testing whether a new housing borrower could afford repayments if conditions worsen.
Why this matters to a foreign buyer
As at May 2026, the minimum buffer remains 3 percentage points above the loan product rate. Lenders may use stricter assumptions, so passing a simple repayment calculator does not establish serviceability.
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