How the Australian Government Help to Buy Scheme helped Jasper buy his first home

When Jasper set out to buy his first home, he wanted it to be in North Melbourne – a suburb he knew and loved.

“I always fell in love with the area,” he says.

“But unfortunately everything was out of my price range.”

The numbers back up the narrative. The price of a typical home has greatly outpaced incomes, and home ownership for young Australians (like Jasper) has decreased over successive generations.

So when the Australian Government launched the Help to Buy shared equity scheme, he signed up right away, and finding his “dream” apartment in North Melbourne became a reality.

Finding Help to Buy

Jasper discovered the Help to Buy Scheme through his interest in the (now retired) Victorian Homebuyer Fund, a state government initiative that was delivered through Bank Australia and other approved lenders.

When the Help to Buy Scheme was announced, he was happy to see that Bank Australia was also a Participating Lender helping to provide home loans for the scheme.

“I've always been a Bank Australia customer,” he says. “My grandmother used to work there [then MECU] back in the day!”

Here’s how the Help to Buy Scheme works.

Homebuyers need to:

• Save a minimum 2% deposit
• Get a home loan from a Participating Lender (Bank Australia is one)
• Cover the costs of acquiring the home (e.g. stamp duty, legal fees, registration fees etc.)

The Australian Government will then:  

• Contribute up to 30% (existing homes) or 40% (new homes) toward the purchase price in exchange for an equal percentage equity stake in the property

You can find more information and check your eligibility against the criteria at Bank Australia’s Help to Buy hub. 

Jasper signed up on the day the Scheme launched.

“It opened doors that otherwise weren't an option for me,” he says.

“It lowered my mortgage repayments and expanded my borrowing power so I could buy something more with less, essentially."

Finding his “dream home”

Having applied for the Help to Buy Scheme, Jasper then set out to find the right property. He attended inspections for six months with no luck.

Then, last December, he attended three in one day.

The first two weren't right, but when Jasper entered the third – a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in the heart of North Melbourne – he felt it.

"I just knew from the moment I walked in," he says. "My mum said, 'You’re there, this is the one.'"

Jasper's timing was lucky. The quiet pre-holiday period meant his offer was accepted quickly, and he chose to bypass a broker, instead dealing directly with the Bank Australia team.

“I had a lot of help from the staff at Bank Australia,” he says. “The team was so supportive all the way through.”

There’s a lot Jasper loves about his new home:

• Its location – central and right beside a tram line, making it easy for friends to visit.‍
• The sense of community – the suburb has a real “neighbourhood” vibe, right beside the CBD.
  

• The rooftop – with epic city views and a shared veggie garden for residents.
• Decorating and making it his own – Jasper has fitted out his space with salvaged secondhand finds and homemade creative projects.

Jasper's advice to young buyers

As a young homeowner, Jasper knows his experience isn’t universal.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to live at home for the past couple of years and I've had solid employment,” he says.

“It's not all just saving habits. I think it's more than that.”

But schemes like Help to Buy are aiming to make home ownership more achievable for more Australians, including young people.

“Buying a property sometimes seems like this really daunting, far away thing,” Jasper says.

“But schemes like Help to Buy make it a bit easier to approach. It can definitely be feasible.”

Learn more and check your eligibility for the Australian Government's Help to Buy Scheme through Bank Australia.