Family Home Guarantee

Eligibility criteria

To apply for the FHG, home buyers must be:  

• applying as an individual  
• a single parent or single legal guardian of at least one dependent (see Eligible Single Parent and Eligible Single Legal Guardian note below) 
• an Australian citizen or permanent resident* at the time they enter the loan  
• at least 18 years of age  
• earning no more than $125,000 per year  
• intending to be the owner-occupier of the purchased property  
• NOT currently owning property, or upon settlement of the guaranteed property they’re buying, not intending to own a separate property.

*The Department of Home Affairs classifies New Zealand Citizens as Permanent Residents for the purposes of citizenship applications only. This does not extend outside of this process. To verify your eligibility for the Home Guarantee Scheme, please perform a VEVO check with a participating lender.
 

Eligible Single Parent and Eligible Single Legal Guardian

To apply for the FHG, home buyers must:  

• be single. A person is considered single if they don’t have a spouse and/or a de facto partner. Note: a person who is separated but not divorced is not considered single 
• have at least one dependent. To have a dependent, they must be the natural parent or adoptive parent or legal guardian of: 
  • a “dependent child” within the meaning of subsections (2), (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) of section 5 of the Social Security Act 1991; or   
  • a person in receipt of a disability support pension within the meaning of the Social Security Act 1991 who lives with you.  
• they must show that they are legally responsible (whether alone or jointly with another person) for the day-to-day care, welfare and development of the dependent and the dependent is in their care. 

Previous Home Ownership

FHG applicants can be either first home buyers or previous homeowners who do not intend to own a separate property upon settlement of the guaranteed property they’re buying.

Access the Eligibility Tool – a short questionnaire to help home buyers determine which Guarantee/s they may be eligible for. 

Contact a Participating Lender for more information, including the full list of eligibility criteria. 

Deposit required

Home buyers applying for the FHG need to have between 2% and 20% of the value of an eligible property saved as a deposit. The minimum deposit required for the FHG is 2%, but Participating Lenders may require a higher percentage deposit based on individual financial circumstances.

Home buyers should speak with a Participating Lender to find out whether a deposit is made up of genuine savings for the purposes of their lending criteria and the FHG.

Home buyers should confirm with their Participating Lender whether any cash grants received under other Australian Government, State or Territory schemes or programs can be considered as part of their genuine savings. 

Contact a Participating Lender for more information and to discuss individual circumstances. 

Property types and price caps

Under the HGS, home buyers can buy a residential property, including: 

• an existing house, townhouse or apartment 
• a house and land package 
• land and a separate contract to build a home 
• an off-the-plan apartment or townhouse. 

Use the Property Price Cap Tool to look up the property price caps for each location. 

Specific timeframes and criteria apply to different property types. The contract of sale and (if applicable) eligible building contract may need to be executed by specific dates.

Contact a Participating Lender for more information, including the full list of property criteria.

How to apply

HGS applications can only be made with a Participating Lender or their authorised representative (a mortgage broker). NHFIC does not accept HGS applications or provide personal financial advice. 

Home buyers (and those advising them) should consider consulting a Participating Lender and seeking independent financial and legal advice about whether a particular home loan or property, and the terms of the HGS suit personal circumstances and objectives.  

Before entering into a home loan agreement, home buyers should consider talking with their lender (or broker) about the potential implications of changing interest rates or house prices on individual circumstances.

Participating Lenders

NHFIC has authorised a panel of 33 Participating Lenders to offer the HGS to home buyers.  

Notice of Assessment (NOA)

The HGS includes an income test, which is assessed by lenders using a Notice of Assessment (NOA). 

Once a tax return has been processed, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) sends a statement called the Notice of Assessment to the taxpayer’s myGov Inbox. 

For HGS reservations made from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024, the relevant Notice of Assessment is the 2022-2023 financial year. NHFIC advises applicants to speak to their Participating Lender to understand the risk of signing a Contract of Sale prior to obtaining the latest Notice of Assessment.