High Net Worth Lawyer Private Banking: What Is Real
Private banking sells calm. What it actually delivers is a different credit policy: manual assessment, portfolio-secured lending and pricing set by a relationship manager rather than a published rate card. For an equity partner whose income arrives as distributions, trust entitlements and franked dividends, that matters more than the marble in the foyer.
Retail scoring reads a partner's income as whatever survives the distribution ledger. Capital draws, trust entitlements and franking credits are often excluded, so the automated assessment understates real capacity and returns the packaged card.
Private banking tiers exist because concentrated wealth is cheaper to administer than volume. APRA capital settings and the lender's risk appetite allow a relationship manager to write outside standard policy where security is strong and the balance sheet is transparent. That discretion is the product.
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Legal Income & Drawings Assessment Simulator
Estimate assessed borrowing capacity when income arrives as salaried package, partnership drawings or trust distributions rather than a single PAYG wage.
| Private tier feature | Typical entry point | Genuine advantage | Mostly presentation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Relationship pricing | Usually $1m or more in lending | Negotiated margin below the card | Headline rate without the split |
| Portfolio security | Listed shares and managed funds | Lending without selling the assets | LVR still set by volatility |
| Credit discretion | Strong balance sheet evidence | Manual assessment of trust income | Discretion is not a policy override |
| Cash management | Multiple offset accounts | Interest netting across facilities | Package fees reappear as fees |
1. What Private Banking Actually Reprices
Private banking changes three variables: assessed income, the security pool and the margin. The rate is only the visible one. Because APRA serviceability expectations require a buffer above the product rate, a facility priced 40 basis points lower lifts assessed capacity slightly.
Portfolio-secured lending is the second lever. Where a borrower holds listed shares or managed funds, a lender may take a charge over those assets and release residential equity without forcing a sale and the capital gains event. Loan-to-value against the portfolio sits well below residential limits, so a market fall can trigger a call.
2. Evidence a Private Bank Wants to See
Manual assessment means a human reads your file, so a reconciled balance sheet beats a large deposit. Prepare the entity structure, trust deeds and distribution resolutions before the first meeting.
- Two years of personal returns plus trust and partnership returns, with distribution statements reconciling entitlements to bank credits.
- A current balance sheet listing securities, superannuation, portfolio holdings and any contingent guarantee given for the practice.
- Evidence of the practice or chambers structure, including the deed, unit holdings and any partnership capital account balance.
- Current practising certificate and admission details, which support the legal-professional policy position on the owner-occupied component.
- A written summary of intended use of funds, whether portfolio gearing, a commercial acquisition or a property upgrade.
3. Negotiating and Consolidating the Mandate
Leverage comes from concentration. A private bank will sharpen pricing where the whole relationship sits with it: home loan, investment lending, offset balances and a portfolio charge. Take the residential refinance first, prove the conduct, then request a margin review once balances have seasoned.
Watch the packaging arithmetic. An annual fee only pays where offset balances and the facility count justify it, and lenders may reprice the discount after year one. Case Study: A Victorian equity partner on a $780,000 distribution held a $2.9 million Kew home owing $1.27 million, and a private bank facility priced 0.62 per cent below her prior card released $1.05 million for a commercial deposit.
Accredited Mortgage Specialists
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David Chi Tran
Emerge Finance
Frequently Asked Questions: High Net Worth Lawyer Private Banking Rates
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