Whether you’re buying or building your first home, the experience can be a daunting one, as it’s probably one of the biggest purchases you’ll ever make.
To support you in your first home buyer journey, there are several types of support from the Australian Government that you may be eligible for. Both the First Home Guarantee (FHBG) and Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee (RFHBG) provide an assurance to Participating Lenders that allow you to purchase your first home sooner, with a deposit of as little as 5% and without having to pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance. This is because Housing Australia guarantees the difference between the borrower’s deposit of at least 5% and 20% of the value of the eligible property.
If you are eligible for the Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee you are not eligible for the First Home Guarantee. Home buyers who are not eligible for the RFHBG, may be eligible for the First Home Guarantee or the Family Home Guarantee (FHG). To help you work out which Guarantee you may be eligible for, try the Eligibility Tool on the Housing Australia website.
To help minimise your research time we have summarised the opportunities below that could help you with your first home experience.
If you are a first home buyer and also a single parent or eligible single legal guardian, the Family Home Guarantee could also be an option for you.
Family Home Guarantee (FHG)
Saving to purchase a family home can be a challenging task, especially when you are a single parent or single legal guardian.
The Family Home Guarantee is for eligible single parents and eligible single legal guardians of at least one dependent, such as aunts, uncles or grandparents. Applicants can include those who are not first home buyers.
The purpose of the Family Home Guarantee is to support eligible single parents and eligible single legal guardians to buy a home. It does this by allowing Housing Australia to issue 5,000 guarantees each financial year to eligible single parents and eligible single legal guardians with a deposit of between 2 and 20 per cent of the property value.
Applicants can have previously owned a home and still be eligible provided they no longer have an invested interest in the property.
As a first home buyer you may also be eligible for other government support programs like the First Home Super Saver Scheme, state and territory First Home Owner Grants, and stamp duty concessions.
Before acquiring the product, the information above should be read in conjunction with the following documents to determine if the product is right for you: Target Market Determination; Home Loan brochure; Account and Access Facility Conditions of Use; Fees and Charges brochure; Loan Interest Rate Schedule; and Credit Guide.