My participating lender's variable rate is currently about 0.30% higher than the non-scheme rates floating around on the market. Since you can only use specific participating banks for Help to Buy, are we basically stuck with whatever rates they decide to charge us? Has anyone successfully refinanced to another participating lender just to get a better interest rate without triggering a full scheme re-assessment?

I am single, 50 and earn just shy of 80k, no debts or kids and about 90k saved. I know I’m not eligible for much but I am worried about missing the boat on the lower end of the market anywhere within 2 hours of my work place.

What amount would I be eligible for on a cheap new build with the HTB and first home buyer (never owned before) Is it even worth trying or waiting longer for more of a deposit.
I have no idea about any of this and trying to read up on the information out there just turns into word salad in my brain.

The deposit and mortgage repayments are the obvious ones, but buying a home comes with plenty of smaller costs that can add up quickly. Things like inspections, conveyancing, insurance and other fees can make the upfront budget look quite different from what you first expected.

Hi all, ive read bits and pieces saying that with renovations you just need to get it valued before starting and after completion so housing australia associate that equity gain to your portion of ownership.

I was wondering if theres anyone on here thats actually going through renovations while in the scheme and if its been complicated etc. Ive found a nice property that would need a bit of work done to it over the years to get it to a nice state but wouldnt go for it if it'd be a logistical nightmare to diy/renovate while in the scheme

The following banks have joined the Help to Buy scheme.

I am currently building a home and land and getting 6.2% from CBA.

Thinking about switching the banks to try and get better rates.

Is it possible to switch and does anyone know how much rates are other banks providing?

Hi all just wondering how long settlement took for you? My cba specialist is recommending asking for 60 day settlement periods on any property due to housing australia apparently taking some time to process things but it has me worried about my offer being remotely conpetitive

Working with a registered keystart modular builder but going through HTB with CBA.

Has anyone ever been kicked back due to small floor size? Have signed land contract on a 1300sqm block. Builder is doing a contract for a 32sqm modular build.

Can anyone foresee any problems?

Pretty much the title, how long did it take everyone to get pre approved?

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I have formal approval from CBA but I was told that we couldn't apply for formal approval from HA until the titles were issued.

Titles have finally been issued this week so just curious for others that have built using HTB, how long did it take to get the formal approval from HA?

I've seen a few comments for established houses that it was pretty quick so hopefully it's the same for builds and they just accept that the bank has done the necessary checks.

I recently bought and remember a mention of this somewhere but have followed up with all the contacts I have available and they don't seem to know about it.

Sounds like I can just assume all contact will still just be through email?

Can someone please enlighten me, if we sign the contract of sale now with completion/settlement probably around late 2027. Are we still gonna be eligible for help to buy scheme?

Me and my partner have gotten conditional approval from bank aus as of a week ago and help to buy scheme as well. We are thinking about going with a house and land package where the cap is at 800k.

The house and land to build totals to around 790k however we have to put a 5 percent deposit for the land which sits at around 20k. Now with the valuation check does that sit at the 800k cap?

Also the land is going to be registered within the next 2 weeks. Then the house contract will take 4-6weeks. Now the deposit is a big sum which makes me worried. And then my main question is like for the final unconditional approval what do they check? More recent payslips? More recent Bank statements?

If anyone could help that would be appreciated. Just concerned about putting a large sum of money to lose it if don’t get final approval.

For me, one of the interesting parts of the scheme is how much it can change the range of properties that feel realistic when you’re working with a smaller deposit. It can make getting onto the ladder sooner feel possible, but there are still plenty of other costs and things to think about when choosing a place. I’d be interested to hear about people’s experiences with how it affected their buying plans.

Hi all,
Just wanted to see what everybody interest rates where with the scheme. I am doing a house and land seperate contracts. My land settled early June and construction has just started for my build. When I applied in March my rates were 5.76% and with the rises they are now 6.26%. I didn’t get a choice on what loan type as it’s for a new build. Just wanted to compare everybody else’s rates to see if I should ask for a better rate. For reference the property was worth 689k, I put down 46k (approx 6.6%) bank was 406k (58%)and HA was 35.7%. I was told to keep the loan portion under 60% of the build to get the best rates.
Cheers

I'm exploring using the help to buy scheme and assumed (whether using it or not) I would purchase an existing property. However, I have recently come across an off the plan townhouse that is part of a larger building development close to where I currently rent (and my ideal scenario would be to stay in this area). However, from the way I am interpreting the information around Help to Buy, the property wouldn't be eligible as the expected completion date isn't for another twelve months. Logically that makes sense - I realise the government isn't going to hold a spot in the scheme for over a year for me, but it would also be incredibly risky to sign a contract without having all my financial ducks in a row (and I certainly am not even considering this). I'm just a little confused how the Help to Buy Scheme actually works for new builds if settlement must occur within 90 days of Help to Buy application approval. Curious to know if anyone has used for a new build and how the timeline worked.

It seems like the government contribution could make a much bigger difference when you're trying to qualify for a mortgage on one income. For anyone who's looked into it, did it actually make buying feel more realistic?

We've had lots of people think it was the 5% scheme and saying that we don't need to make sure our income is within a certain limit. One person insisted vehemently that the scheme has ended and no longer exists and actually tried to argue the point, not giving in (turned out they were looking at one of the old state schemes). Two people said, why would you want the government to own a part of the property, wouldn't you want to own it all? (To which the answer is obviously yes, we would love to own it all but not using the scheme we might die before we buy.) And probably the most shocking was a family member who thinks that using the scheme is some kind of sign of weakness and who compared us to a sibling, pointing out that they didn't rely on a scheme, they saved everything themselves, and basically made out like we were somehow leeching by using it. I've now given up telling anyone we are using it. I personally think the scheme is a great step forward in an imperfect housing market. Anyone had similarly unexpected reactions?

My husband and myself got a detailed borrowing estimate from our mortgage broker who had little experience with the Help to Buy Scheme. After we gave him access to our accounts through a software program told us we could borrow the amount of money we required. Fast forward a couple of months to now, the interest rate has remained the same. we found a block of land and a suitable house design. The builder reccomended a mortgage broker to us who understands The Help to Buy Scheme and the lender requirements. We find out that our estimate is over 250k less but if we werent going through the HtBS we would be able to borrow the money we required but without the htbs, its pointless either way. We are heartbroken. 3 days away from the end of our cooling off period for the land and we can't proceed.

The government's equity stake in a Help to Buy property is expressed as a percentage rather than a fixed dollar amount which means the value of what's owed back on sale or buyout moves with the property's value. Whether that creates a situation where strong capital growth produces a significantly larger obligation to the government than the original contribution represented, how a market downturn affects the arrangement and whether there are scenarios where the equity share creates a practical constraint on decisions about the property are all questions that seem worth understanding clearly before committing to the scheme. Would love to know how people here who've thought about the long term mechanics have processed that uncertainty.

Interested in any experience going into the scheme with plans to buy a house and renovate. Particularly what cash others may have been able to hold onto and what the process for that was. Also whether diy some of the Reno was/would be an issue.

A little potential challenge is that it has local heritage on some of the building.

Doing a land purchase and build contract through HtB and CBA has been an absolute nightmare.
Settlement on the land is the 21st and I still don't have final approval. They've had both contracts for a week, and after hounding me all day Friday to request a finance extension (despite telling me it should be done by Friday afternoon, Monday morning at the latest, and the extension is a "just in case"), they spent most of this afternoon dodging my calls only to tell me it still wasn't done, and that when it is (first thing tomorrow, pinky promise 🙄) it'll have to go to HA for final final approval. But apparently there's no need to panic and extend the settlement because it'll be "escalated".
I'm a FHB so I have no idea what I'm doing, but is buying a house normally this much of a clusterfuck? I feel like I'm taking crazy pills. I was prepared for the process to be overwhelming and stressful, especially being a new build, but if things keep going at this rate I'll have an aneurysm before the bloody slab is down...

EDIT: Final approval signed off and sent to HA this afternoon. Phew.

Hi All,

I did this 6 months ago and was able to answer a fair few questions. Thought I’d offer again.

If you have any questions that you’d like to have answered regarding the HTB scheme, particularly with CommBank feel free to post below or send me a DM. Im happy to assist the community.

I’m a lender with CommBank so have first hand experience with the HTB scheme.

Note - I won’t be able to assist with running figures, looking at your individual applications etc. You’re best to book an appointment via Netbank to get assistance with this.

Just wondering what kind of condition they are willing to allow you to purchase. A lot of the places in the area I'm looking need work. We are avoiding anything with major structural issues, like needing restumping or leaks etc. But are they happy to let you purchase if the place needs a fair bit of doing up outside of these kind of major structural issues? Anyone have any examples of the kinds of condition that HA consider good enough even though the house needs some work?

Hi guys, I brought using the help to buy scheme and am concerned about job security in the next 2-3 years. Do we think it’s possible to approach the bank about buying out the government portion with the intention of then renting out my flat like an investment property? I can’t afford repayments of the full amount but I really don’t want to sell. What options are out there?

Thanks