The Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) has today welcomed the commencement of the expanded Federal Government’s 5% Deposit Scheme, calling it a practical and inclusive step toward helping more Australians achieve the dream of home ownership.
UDIA National President, Oscar Stanley, said the scheme is more than just supply metrics, it’s about ensuring equal access to home ownership across the community.
“Helping more Australians overcome the deposit hurdle is an important and practical step on the path to home ownership,” Mr Stanley said. “But to truly turn aspiration into reality, we must match demand-side support like this with serious investment in the supply side. We need planning reform and enabling infrastructure funding to ensure homes are affordable for these first home buyers to buy.”
While aimed at creating fairness, we cannot escape the demand inducing nature of this policy and remind the government of the need to support the supply side of housing with investment in house enabling infrastructure.
“This is exactly the right moment for the Commonwealth to accelerate National Housing Accord incentive payments and work with the States to deliver the water, roads and services that unlock new housing,” he added. “Without that parallel investment, well-intentioned demand measures risk adding pressure to an already under-supplied market.”
The scheme enables eligible home buyers to purchase a property with as little as 5% deposit, without the need to pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance, thanks to a Government guarantee on a portion of the loan.
As of today, several enhancements to the scheme will take effect, including:
- More places available under the Deposit Scheme
- Higher property price caps, better reflecting today’s market conditions; and,
- Removal of income caps, broadening access to more Australians.
“These are practical changes that give Australians a genuine shot at owning a home,” Mr Stanley said.
UDIA National strongly supports initiatives that help break down financial barriers for first-home buyers and acknowledge the broader equity and social benefits of the scheme. “We strongly support measures that reduce financial barriers, and we will remain equally focused on continuing to work with the Albanese Government to boost supply so that this great opportunity is matched by affordable home availability.”