First Home Grant

PHOTO: First Home Grants

The government has admitted it got the settings wrong for First Home Grants and as a result the scheme is heading for the lowest number of grants paid out since it began.

The grants aim to help first home buyers raise a deposit but price caps are widely seen as far too low in an overheated housing market.

Changes were made in April to make it easier to access the grants of up to $10,000, but the numbers being approved have now dropped for the third month in a row.

In April, 1045 grants were paid, dropping to 954 in May and 807 in June.

While the number of grants paid was 4 percent higher this quarter (2806) than the first quarter of this year (2698), only 5504 grants in total have been paid this year.

At this rate, it will be the lowest number of grants paid since 2014, the year the scheme was launched.

The number of grants paid have been consistently dropping over the past four years, from an all time high of 17,160 in 2018 to just 13,978 in 2020.

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