Moving House
Buying your next home is a bit more complex than buying your first home.
Should you buy or sell first? What happens to your mortgage when you move?
If you’re looking to make a move, talk to us first. We'll help you review your financial position and make sure you’re getting the best deal and the right advice.
When you're considering a move, there's a lot to think about. We can help.
- Should you buy or sell first?
- What is bridging finance and how do you arrange it?
- What deposit do you need for your next home?
- Can you use your sale deposit for your next purchase?
- How do you align settlement dates to avoid extra costs?
- How do you choose a good agent?
We'll answer these and more. Our advisers are here to make the process easier, so you can spend more time on the important stuff - like searching for your next dream home. We've even got a handy guide with some sweet tips on buying and selling at the same time.
Why talk to Squirrel when you've already got a mortgage?
Review your financial situation
We'll make sure your mortgage is taken care of when you move house and ensure you've got the best rate and mortgage structure.
More lending options
We've got relationships with all the banks, plus non-banks too. More options means a better deal for you.
Our advisers aren't incentivised by lenders
They're paid the same no matter which lender you end up with, so you know you won't get pushed into a loan you don't want or can't afford.
Sort the deals from the duds
We love putting properties under the microscope. When you find a potential home, we'll check it out and make sure you're not buying a lemon.
Let's get started
Book a time to talk to an adviser today.
Check out the video of Courtney's story.
She's one of our favourite clients and we helped her and her family into their second home.
What happens to your mortgage when you move house?
What a lot of people don’t realise is when you move house, you can move your mortgage with it.
Say you’ve got a really good rate on your current mortgage and you don’t want to lose it. If you're still borrowing the same amount, we can move the mortgage rate from one property to another. This is a smooth process if settlement for both properties is the same day. Of course lining both up for the same day isn't always possible, so don't fret - there are options for that too, like bridging finance.
Another common option is paying off your home loan in full when you sell, and taking out a new one against the new property.
If you need to borrow more for the new property, we can approach the bank on your behalf and make sure you get the best deal.
When you’re repaying your loan once you’ve sold, you may have to pay break fees so before you sign anything, get in touch with one of our team to chat through your options.
Bridging finance
In a perfect world, you'd sell your house one day and land the perfect gem the next, then settle both on the same day. But we live in the real world where that's not usually the case. If you end up buying first, there are two kinds of bridging loans you could go for:
Open-ended bridging
This is when you buy first and intend to sell, but haven't sold yet. Banks are reluctant to do open-ended bridging finance unless you are in a strong enough financial position to support both mortgages.
Closed bridging
This is when you buy, and before settlement, your existing house is sold under unconditional contract but is yet to settle. This is generally easy to finance.
Moving homes? JB explains what happens to your mortgage in just over 2 minutes
FAQs
Buying and selling at the same time can feel like a balancing act, but with a little planning, it's totally manageable. We've answered a few questions to help guide you through the process.
More lenders, more options
Chat to a mortgage whiz
Not sure where to start? Book a chat and we'll give you a call to talk through your situation, and provide advice for your next move.
Have a gander at our blogs
You'll find some useful insights on the joys of moving house.
NZ property market update — Outlook for 2026
We've almost done it, folks—we've nearly made it out the other side of 2025. And that means it's time to stop and reflect on the year that's been and what might be in store over the next 12 months. The good news is that 2026 is shaping up to be a year of a lot more stability.
Wellington property market update — Outlook for 2026
Residents of the Capital have arguably had it tougher than most this year—which is saying something—but the good news is that things are looking up for 2026. Our resident Wellington mortgage expert, Nick Virtue, shares his take on what's to come over the next 12 months.
Christchurch property market update – Outlook for 2026
It's been a year of big moves and changes—but with interest rates down, and house prices up, the Christchurch housing market is rounding out 2025 on a positive note. Here's the latest from our resident Christchurch mortgage expert, Nathan Miglani.
After some advice?
We're here to help.
Don’t just take our word for it
Eve H
New Zealand
We were really happy with the advice and service we recieved from Tasmania. Of note was the advice around staying on the floating rate prior to the OCR announcement, saving us thousands off our mortgage so wo lock in the lower rate. Tas was great in following up with us on what we needed to get in and timelines and we would use and recommend him in the future.
Anonymous
New Zealand
Was a great experience and really helped us financially
Kevin
New Zealand
Great communication. Through a mortgage process can be stressful however Squirrel took all the stress away and we ended up with a fantastic product
Danielle
New Zealand
Amazing help from Nelson and Angela, always a quick message away and made the process of buying a house so much easier. Absolutely recommend!