Albo’s first home buyer policies – how will they affect Mount Isa?

Now that the dust has settled on the federal election, it’s time to take a look at Labor’s first home buyer policies and how they could affect the Mount Isa property market. There are some big (and positive) changes looming for Mount Isa first home buyers.

The Help to Buy Scheme

The Help to Buy Scheme will be open to 10,000 eligible first home buyers in Australians each financial year. It will reduce the cost of buying a home by 30 per cent for existing homes, and 40% for new homes, because those percentages of the purchase price will be paid by the federal government. This will avoid eligible buyers from having to pay the cost of lenders’ mortgage insurance (which can be $10,000 or more on a typical home loan).

The government will assume part ownership of homes bought under the Help to Buy Scheme, and will only need to be paid back if or when the home is sold. The government would be entitled to be repaid their share of the purchase price plus their share of any capital gain.

Buyers can choose to repay the government’s share during the term of their loan if they want to have more (or full) ownership.

Eligibility requirements for The Help to Buy Scheme

To be eligible for the Help to Buy Scheme, buyers will need to meet all of the following criteria:
an Australian citizen over the age of 18.
earning less than $90,000 per year (individuals) or less than $120,000 (couples).
buying a residential home (i.e. not an investment property).
a first home buyer.
able to come up with at least a 2% deposit.
able to get a home loan approval for at least 68% of the purchase price (existing homes) or 58% (new homes).
able to pay for additional home purchase costs (stamp duty, conveyancing fees and bank fees).
able to afford ongoing property ownership costs (like rates).
buying a property priced at or below the Help to Buy Scheme’s cap for the geographic area ($500,000 for Mount Isa).
Applications for the Help to Buy Scheme will open in January 2023.

The Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme

The Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme is a separate scheme to the Help to Buy Scheme. Regional applicants can apply for either Scheme, but there are different benefits and eligibility requirements. The government doesn’t take any ownership of a home bought under this Scheme. Its main aim is to help first home buyers to avoid the cost of lenders mortgage insurance.

Eligibility requirements for The Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme

To be eligible for the Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme, buyers will need to meet all of the following criteria:
an Australian citizen over the age of 18.
earning less than $125,000 per year (individuals) or less than $200,000 (couples).
buying a residential home outside of a capital city (i.e. not an investment property).
have lived in the regional area for at least 12 months.
a first home buyer.
able to come up with at least a 5% deposit.
able to get a home loan approval for at least 95% of the purchase price.
able to pay for additional home purchase costs (stamp duty, conveyancing fees and bank fees).
able to afford ongoing property ownership costs (like rates).
buying a property priced at or below the Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme’s cap for the geographic area ($450,000 for Mt Isa first home buyers).
Applications for the Regional First Home Buyer Support Scheme will open in January 2023.

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