What is the Home Guarantee Scheme?
Saving a deposit can be a huge hurdle for Australians wanting to get into their own home, especially younger people and single parents. That’s why we’re proud to be working alongside the Australian Government as a participating lender on the Home Guarantee Scheme; an initiative designed to bring home ownership closer for eligible home buyers.
How it works.
When buying property, you typically need a deposit of at least 20% of the property’s value to secure a home loan and avoid paying Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance (LMI).
Through the Home Guarantee Scheme, Housing Australia provides a Guarantee to the Participating Lender (like us) of up to 15% of the value of a home loan under the First Home Guarantee or the Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee; and up to 18% under the Family Home Guarantee.
This means eligible applicants get into a home sooner while avoiding costly LMI or relying on a guarantor.
Am I eligible for a Home Guarantee?
- All applicants can be First Home Buyers or must not have owned or had an interest in residential property (whether as an investment or owner occupied) in the past 10 years. Customers applying for the Family Home Guarantee may have owned property in the past, but they must not have an interest in residential property, either as an investor or owner occupier when settling on their new property
- Individual applicants must have earned less than $125,000 or $200,000 for couples in the last financial year (as evidenced on your ATO Notice of Assessment).
- All applicants must be at least 18 years of age and have a valid Medicare card (or Defence ID).
- All applicants must be Australian citizens or Permanent Residents with either a valid Australian passport, proof of Australian citizenship or proof of Permanent Residency.
- Applicants must have a deposit of between 2% and 20% of the property’s value.
- Your purchased property must be an acceptable property type and within the property price threshold for the suburb and postcode. You can check the property price cap for your area on the Housing Australia website.
Guarantee options.
First Home Guarantee
Supports eligible first home buyers or buyers who have not owned a property in the past 10 years to purchase a new or existing home with a deposit as low as 5%.
Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee
Supports eligible applicants living in regional areas to buy a home in a regional area with a deposit as low as 5%.
Family Home Guarantee
Supports eligible single parents or legal guardians with at least one dependent child to buy their first home or to re-enter the housing market with a deposit of as little as 2%.
How to apply.
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Check your eligibility
Use Housing Australia's Eligibility Tool to determine which Guarantee/s you may be eligible for.
It's a short questionnaire that takes less than 5 minutes to complete. -
Prepare and apply
Our Lending Specialists will help you organise the documents required to verify your details and eligibility, plus you'll get a chance to ask any lingering questions. When you're ready, we can lodge the application on your behalf and keep you up to date on its progress, too. -
Buy a home!
Yep, if you're eligible for a scheme - it's that simple.
You'll have 90 days from approval on the Home Guarantee Scheme to purchase your home.
I'm ready to get started.
Let’s bring you closer to home-sweet-home. The first step: booking you in for a meeting with a Lending Specialist, who can meet you in-person or over a phone or video call.
Other borrowing options for low deposits.
Lenders' Mortgage Insurance
Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance (LMI) is a one-off premium that can help you secure a home loan if you have a smaller deposit.
Explore option
Parent equity
An immediate family member can help you secure a home loan by using equity in their home as security.
Explore option
Buying your first home?
Now that's exciting! If you need a hand learning the lingo or understanding the home buying process, check out the guides, tools, FAQs, and calculators available on our first home buyer hub.
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