Family Home

The Family Home Guarantee (FHG) is part of the Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS), an Australian Government initiative to support eligible single parents with at least one dependent purchase a home sooner. It is administered by the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) on behalf of the Australian Government. 

The FHG aims to support eligible single parents with at least one dependent child to buy a home, whether that single parent is a first home buyer or a previous home owner. From 1 July 2022 – 30 June 2023, 5,000 FHG places are available to eligible single parents with at least one dependent. 

Under the FHG, part of an eligible home buyer’s home loan from a Participating Lender is guaranteed by NHFIC. This enables an eligible home buyer to purchase a home with as little as 2% deposit without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance. 

Any Guarantee of a home loan is for up to a maximum amount of 18% of the value of the property (as assessed by the Participating lender). This Guarantee is not a cash payment or a deposit for a home loan. 

To apply for the FHG, home buyers must be:  

• applying as an individual  
• a single parent with at least one dependent child (see Single Parent note below) 
• an Australian citizen at the time they enter the loan  
• at least 18 years of age  
• be earning no more than $125,000 per year  
• intending to be owner-occupier of the purchased property  
• NOT currently own property (see Previous Home Ownership note below). 

Single parent  

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 child. To have a dependent child, you must be the natural or adoptive parent of the child and the child must either be 
• 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   
• at least 16 but under 22 years of age, receive a disability support pension within the meaning of the Social Security Act 1991 and live with you.  

For the purposes of the Social Security Act 1991, you must show that you are legally responsible (whether alone or jointly with another person) for the day-to-day care, welfare and development of the dependent child and the dependent child is in your care. 

Previous home ownership  

FHG applicants can be either first home buyers or previous owners who do not currently own a home. To be eligible, you must not currently have:  

• a freehold interest in real property in Australia  
• a lease of land in Australia  
• a company title interest in land in Australia. 

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

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

Under the FHG, home buyers can purchase 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 the different property types. The contract of sale and (if applicable) eligible building contract may have to be executed by specific dates.   

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