First-Home Loan Deposit Scheme almost full four months after it opened: new data

PHOTO: First-home buyers loans are at decade highs. Photo: Peter Photo: Peter Rae

There are few chances left for first-home buyers to snap up an established property with a low 5 per cent deposit while avoiding mortgage insurance, new figures reveal.

Only four months since it opened, there are just 363 places left across the country out of the 10,000 spots released at the beginning of this financial year as part of the federal government’s First-Home Loan Deposit Scheme.

Some 5332 buyers have purchased using the program since July, while 4305 have reserved a place and are looking for a home, Treasury figures show.

Among those who have already bought, the majority were from Sydney (965), Melbourne (823), Brisbane (763) and Perth (373).

It comes at a time when first-home buyers have been keen to get onto the property ladder, with the proportion of first-time buyers at a decade high, accounting for 41.1 per cent of all loans, according to ABS figures.

Mortgage Choice Dee Why broker James Algar said the scheme had all but stopped taking applications due to the sheer demand,

“Compared to January, February [the first 10,000 spots] … the July-August appetite was huge,” Mr Algar said. “Every lender I’ve spoken to has said they’re massively oversubscribed.”

The pandemic produced a counter-effect, drawing more first-home buyers into the market with the perception there were good buying opportunities, Mr Algar said.