How to list your assets and liabilities for a loan application

What is an assets and liabilities statement?

It is a simple two-column list. On one side, everything you own that has value. On the other, everything you owe. Subtract the second from the first and you have your net position, sometimes called net worth. Most lenders and brokers ask for this in some form, either as a section of the application or as a separate schedule.

The point is not to impress anyone. It is to give the person assessing your application an accurate snapshot, so they can match you with a lender whose policy fits and avoid surprises halfway through. A borrower who hands over a tidy, document-backed list often moves faster than one who trickles details across several weeks.

What counts as an asset?

Think broadly, then sort the list into groups:

• Property: your home, investment properties, land, a holiday house, or a share in a family property.
• Cash and savings: transaction accounts, savings accounts, term deposits and offset balances.
• Superannuation: every fund you hold, including any you have forgotten about.
• Vehicles and equipment: cars, utes, trucks, caravans, boats, machinery.
• Shares and investments: listed shares, managed funds, crypto holdings.
• Business interests: shares in a company, a partnership share, a trust interest or the value of a going concern.
• Other items of value: life insurance with a cash value, money owed to you, valuable collectables.

For each item, note what it is worth today, not what you paid. Where you own something jointly, record your share and who the other owners are.

What counts as a liability?

Liabilities are commitments to pay. Write down:

• Home and investment property loans, with balances and limits.
• Car, equipment and personal loans.
• Credit cards and store cards, showing the limit as well as the balance.
• Buy now pay later accounts.
• Tax debts, including ATO payment plans.
• Student debts such as HECS-HELP.
• Child support or spousal maintenance obligations.
• Guarantees you have given for someone else’s loan.

Lenders frequently work from card limits rather than the amount you currently owe, which is why a limit you never touch can still shape your borrowing power. Our guide to loan serviceability explains how that plays out.

How do I find my super?

Many Australians have more than one super account. Moneysmart explains that you can look for super you have lost track of at no cost, and you do not need to pay a third party to do it. The main routes are:

1. myGov: sign in, link the ATO if you have not already, and view your super accounts and balances.
2. The ATO app: choose Super, then Fund details, to see active and lost accounts.
3. Phone: Moneysmart lists the ATO’s automated line, which asks for your tax file number, plus an operator line if you do not have it to hand.
4. Mail: the ATO has a lost super search form you can complete and post.
5. In person: a Services Australia centre can help you contact the ATO.

Once you find a fund, ask for a current member statement. Be careful about where you type personal details: confirm you are on the real fund website before entering anything.

Why does super matter if I cannot borrow against it?

In most standard lending, super is not security for the loan. It still matters. Lenders assess your whole financial position, and a healthy balance shows long-term savings. For self-managed super fund borrowers, it matters far more, because the fund itself is the borrower. If that is your situation, see our page on SMSF borrowing.

Combining accounts can tidy your paperwork, though Moneysmart advises checking whether you would lose insurance cover or other benefits before you do. That is a decision for you and your fund, not something to rush before an application.

Where do I get the supporting documents?

An assets and liabilities list is only as strong as the paper behind it. A practical checklist:

Item	Where the evidence usually comes from
Property value	Rates notice, recent sales comparison, formal valuation
Property loan balance	Latest loan statement or online banking
Savings	Last three statements or a balance screenshot
Super	Fund member statement or myGov
Vehicle	Registration papers plus a comparable listing
Credit cards	Latest statement showing limit and balance
Tax debt	ATO account statement
Shares	Broker or registry statement

For tax debts, our guide on getting an ATO account statement walks through the steps, and the broader documents checklist shows how this fits with income evidence.

How accurate do the numbers need to be?

Close enough to be honest, and as close as you can get to the documents. Rounding a balance to the nearest hundred is fine. Leaving out a card, a payment plan or a guarantee is not. Credit reports and bank statements usually reveal commitments anyway, and an omission that surfaces late can slow the file or damage trust. Moneysmart explains how to obtain your credit report, and it is worth reading before you finalise your list.

An illustrative example

This is an illustrative scenario, not a real client.

A couple wants to release some equity from their home for renovations. They start by listing their home, two cars, savings, and super in two funds. Then they list the home loan, a car loan and three credit cards. While checking their super, they discover a third account from an old job. The cards turn out to have much larger limits than they thought, and one has a payment plan they had forgotten about.

Armed with the complete picture, they close two unused cards before applying and bring statements for everything. The broker can then see which lenders suit and how much equity is realistically available. Our pages on home equity loans and cash-out refinance explain the options such a couple might look at.

What mistakes should I avoid?

• Using guesses where statements are available.
• Forgetting joint debts or guarantees you have given.
• Listing only card balances and not limits.
• Overstating what a vehicle or business is worth.
• Ignoring an old super account.
• Leaving it to the last day before a deadline.
• Hiding a debt because it feels awkward. A good broker has seen it before.

How does Ownright use this information?

Trevor Scott and the Ownright team use your list to work out which lenders and structures suit before anything is lodged. Sometimes a clear asset position opens a door, for example when there is equity in a property that supports a second mortgage rather than a full refinance. Sometimes it shows that clearing a small debt first would help. We work Australia-wide from Knoxfield, Victoria. If your list is ready, you can send it through with an enquiry and we will take it from there.

Ready to put your list to work?

Sounds like you are looking for a loan that reflects the whole of your financial position, not just a slice of it. We are the lending experts in matching assets, equity and borrowing needs to the right lender, so click through and see if you qualify. If you would rather talk first, call 03 7043 7233.