The Queensland and Western Australia state governments have expanded their home ownership programs.
The Queensland government doubled its Boost to Buy home ownership scheme to AU$330 million, delivering support for up to 2,000 first home buyers.
The Boost to Buy scheme will provide a government equity contribution of up to 30 per cent for new homes and 25 per cent for existing homes.
To be eligible for the scheme, home buyers need to have saved a minimum 2 per cent deposit for the purchase price of a property up to AU$1 million.
Unity Bank has been accepted as an approved lender for up to 500 initial places for Boost to Buy.
The scheme is open to individuals with an annual income of up to AU$150,000 and households with two adults or singles with dependents earning up to AU$225,000 per annum.
Applications opened on December 15 for the first 500 places, with up to 2,000 first-home buyers expected to benefit over three years.
Meanwhile, in Western Australia, the government’s Help to Buy scheme passed the Parliament.
The scheme will assist eligible low to middle-income earners to purchase a home with a contribution from the state government of up to 40 per cent of the purchase price for new homes and 30 per cent for existing homes.
Individuals earning an annual income of up to AU$100,000 and couples with a combined income of AU$160,000 can apply for the housing initiative.
Eligible participants will be able to purchase property for up to AU$850,000 in Perth and up to AU$600,000 in the rest of the state, with only a 2 per cent deposit calculated on the purchase price.
WA Treasurer Rita Saffioti said: “The Help to Buy scheme will complement the raft of initiatives our government is rolling out through Keystart, including the Urban Connect Shared Equity product, Skilled Start Home Loans for graduates and apprentices, and low deposit loans for modular homes.
“Boosting supply is the other key way of improving affordability, and our government is the focus of our additional investment of around $6 billion in a wide range of initiatives to put WA at the front of the national pack when it comes to the delivery of new housing.”
