What counts as a deposit
Genuine savings are the clearest form. Lenders like to see a pattern of money going in over time, because it also shows you can manage regular repayments.
A KiwiSaver first-home withdrawal can usually form part of your deposit if you meet the scheme's criteria. Gifted funds from family are often accepted too, though lenders will normally want written confirmation of whether the money is a gift or a loan.
LVR explained simply
LVR stands for loan-to-value ratio. It is just the size of the loan compared with the value of the property, written as a percentage.
Borrow a smaller share of the property's value and your LVR is lower, which lenders see as lower risk. Borrow a larger share and the LVR is higher.
Low-deposit lending
Buying with less than a 20% deposit generally falls into low-deposit lending. It is common and it is possible, but it usually comes with extra conditions.
Those can include a stricter assessment, a smaller pool of available lenders, and sometimes a different interest rate or an additional fee. It is worth understanding the full cost before committing.
If you already own a home
Equity plays the same role as a deposit. It is the share of your property's value that is not owed against it, and a lender will look at it the same way when sizing new lending.
These settings change over time
Deposit and LVR rules are adjusted from time to time, and individual lenders apply their own policies on top of them. What was true a year ago may not be true now.
For the current settings and what they mean for you, check with a lender or a licensed adviser rather than relying on anything you read online, including here.
Where to from here
Put in the deposit you expect to have and see what it supports. You can try a couple of different deposit figures to see how much difference saving longer would make.