Victorian shared equity scheme reports lift in home buying

The $500 million scheme, which was released in October, builds on the previous HomesVic program and offers borrowers faster access to purchasing a property. 

Under the scheme, the Victorian government takes a stake of up to 25 per cent of the property purchase price if an eligible borrower possesses a deposit of at least 5 per cent. 

For Indigenous Australians, this required deposit drops to 3.5 per cent with the government contribution lifting to a cap of 35 per cent. 

Participants can purchase in any location across metropolitan Melbourne or in select regional areas, with a cap of $950,000 for the former and $600,000 for the latter. 

Further, once approved, applicants are able to buy out the state government’s share of their property over time at market value.

According to the Victorian government’s latest figures, of the 1,100 applicants who have purchased homes under the Victorian Homebuyer Fund, 700 are first home buyers and more than 100 are based in regional areas. 

In March, the state’s government reported a tally of 500 applicants being approved under the shared equity scheme.

As per a statement from Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas, the Victorian Homebuyer Fund is predicted to assist over 3,000 of the state’s residents to become home owners, with additional applicants having been pre-approved for the scheme. 

“The [Victorian Homebuyer Fund] is bringing forward the dream of home ownership for hundreds of Victorians,” Mr Pallas said.

Mr Pallas added in a statement that during the first four months of the calendar year, the Victorian government provided roughly $245 million in stamp duty benefits to 13,300 first home buyers as well as about $50 million in first home buyers grants. 

“From the shared equity fund to first home owner grants and stamp duty concessions, we’ll keep helping people secure a home of their own,” Mr Pallas said.

The figures followed Victoria releasing its state budget earlier this month, which saw Premier Daniel Andrews pledge almost $40 million to address housing supply, price and infrastructure. 

Of this investment, almost half will be devoted to providing greater protections for consumers, strengthening building standards and addressing building workforce shortages.

Further, the Victorian government will use $6 million to put “downward pressure” on house prices, speeding up precinct planning and approvals for close to 139,000 residential lots across the state. 

An additional $1.6 million will be used, in part, to assist in unlocking sustainable growth throughout the state’s regional areas. 

[Related: NT commits $68m to residential land development]