80% of FY22’s First Home Loan Deposit Scheme places already filled
The government’s First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS) for FY22 has already reached nearly 80 per cent of its annual capacity in the first three months of the year, according to new figures.
At the start of FY22, an additional 10,000 places were offered in the scheme, which helps first-time home owners purchase property with a 5 per cent deposit, facilitated by participating banks and lenders. Recipients must meet a number of requirements, including an income limit, and places have proved to be competitive since it was first introduced in January 2020.
According to a press release issued by Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar, who serves as the minister for housing, 7,784 of the 10,000 places allotted for the year have already been filled in the first three months since 1 July.
The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS) forms part of what the government now calls its Home Guarantee Scheme, which also comprises the New Home Guarantee (NHG) that has an allocation of 10,000 places this financial year, and the Family Home Guarantee (FHG). The latter is a new program introduced at the start of FY21, which has set aside 10,000 places for the four financial years to FY24.
According to Mr Sukkar, since 1 July, 1,023 of the FHG places have been allocated for the program that enables a single parent to purchase a home with a deposit of as little as 2 per cent.
The NHG, which works much like the FHLDS but applies only to buyers purchasing or building new dwellings, has seen 2,443 of its places taken up.
“The government’s Home Guarantee Scheme helps overcome the challenges of saving for a deposit, and has played a huge part in opening up the housing market to even more Australians,” Mr Sukkar said, noting that first home owner numbers were at their highest levels in nearly 15 years. But those hoping to take advantage of the government’s assistance might want to act fast, with the FHLD places rapidly outpacing their annual allocation.
According to the figures, 52,888 Australians have purchased a home or reserved a place under the scheme since 1 January 2020, with 12,251 of those dolled out in the last three months alone.
But outside of the FHLDS, allocations for the NHG and FHG were moving at a less rapid pace, though Mr Sukkar noted that the take-up of the FHG had exceeded expectations.
“The demand from single-parent families now able to get into a house through the Home Guarantee Scheme has been simply remarkable,” he said, reporting that 84 per cent of those assisted were single mothers.
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