With property prices easing in some markets and recent federal budget housing tax reforms reducing investor competition, conditions may be becoming more favourable for first-home buyers. There could be more choice, less pressure, and more room to negotiate than we’ve seen in recent years.
Buying your first home can feel like a big leap. Prices, rates, and lending rules are constantly changing. But the start of a new financial year is a great opportunity to reset, get organised, and understand what support is available to help you take the next step.
Here are five tips if you’re looking to buy your first home this financial year.
1) Review your finances
Before you browse listings or attend open homes, get your finances in shape. Lenders don’t just look at your income. They examine your spending habits too, going through bank statements to build a picture of how you manage money day-to-day.
Go through your statements and identify what subscriptions, memberships, or recurring expenses you could cut or reduce. Even modest changes sustained over a few months can strengthen your application and show lenders you’re financially disciplined.
2) Create a budget and supercharge savings
If you don’t already have one, a budget is a useful tool for understanding your finances. Map out your after-tax income alongside your expenses. These might fall into essentials like rent, groceries, utilities, and insurance, and non-essentials such as eating out, entertainment, and hobbies.
From there, you can see how much you could potentially save each month. A well-known framework is the 50/30/20 rule: 50% toward essentials, 30% toward lifestyle, and 20% toward savings. Many people find that keeping separate bank accounts for each “bucket” works well.
3) Do a credit check
Check your credit report before you apply for a home loan. Lenders review your credit history as part of their assessment process.
Under the Privacy Act 1988, you’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report every three months from each of Australia’s three credit reporting bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and illion.
Your credit report generally includes:
- Your borrowing history over the past five years
- Any credit applications you’ve made
- Your repayment history
Each bureau assigns a credit score on a different scale:
| Bureau | Score range |
|---|---|
| Equifax | 0 to 1,200 |
| Experian | 0 to 1,000 |
| illion | 0 to 1,000 |
Each bureau uses its own scoring system, so your score may vary between them. Different lenders may also use different bureaus.
If you spot errors or anything that doesn’t look right, contact the relevant credit reporting bureau directly to have it investigated and corrected.
4) Understand the government support
Familiarise yourself with the government support available for first-home buyers at a federal and state level. These schemes vary depending on where you’re buying and your personal circumstances.
The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme lets first-home buyers purchase a home with a minimum 5% deposit and government backing. There are no income caps, no limits on places, no waitlists, and you won’t pay Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance (LMI).
The Help to Buy Scheme is a shared equity initiative where the government contributes up to 40% for new builds and 30% for existing homes. Buyers can purchase with a deposit as low as 2% without paying LMI, and 10,000 places are available each year.
The First Home Super Saver Scheme allows you to make voluntary contributions of up to $50,000 into your superannuation to save for a deposit, while taking advantage of concessional tax rates.
Depending on your situation and location, you may also be eligible for the First Home Owner Grant or stamp duty exemptions and concessions. Chat to us and we’ll explain what’s available.
5) Get your finance sorted early
Meet with a mortgage broker before you start house hunting. Understanding your borrowing power upfront saves countless hours looking at properties outside your budget.
We’ll walk you through your borrowing capacity and any upfront and ongoing costs to consider, such as stamp duty, legal fees, and building and pest inspections.
We’ll also help you apply for pre-approval with your preferred lender, so you’re ready to move when you find the right home.
Buying your first home is exciting, and there are plenty of good reasons to jump in now. Let’s make your home purchasing dream a reality this financial year. Get in touch today.
The material on this website has been prepared for general information purposes only and not as specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained on this website is General Advice and does not take into account any person's particular investment objectives, financial situation and particular needs. Before making an investment decision based on this advice you should consider, with or without the assistance of a securities adviser, whether it is appropriate to your particular investment needs, objectives and financial circumstances. In addition, the examples provided on this website are provided for illustrative purposes only. Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of the information contained on this website, Infocus, its officers, representatives, employees and agents disclaim all liability (except for any liability which by law cannot be excluded), for any error, inaccuracy in, or omission from the information contained in this website or any loss or damage suffered by any person directly or indirectly through relying on this information.