Victorian first-home buyer dreams are at risk with state and federal shared equity schemes in limbo.
A growing number of young Victorians’ first-home dreams could be “dead in the water” amid rising concerns they are just months away from losing a key government support program. The Greens and Coalition have this week delayed a decision on the future of the federal Labor government’s national co-buying scheme — where the government takes a share in the equity of home purchases to support first-home buyers.
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This is the second time the key assistance program for young purchasers has been stalled.
Meanwhile, the Victorian Labor government have no plans to extend a state-based equivalent that is currently scheduled to end on June 30 next year.
The Victorian Homebuyer Fund has already helped 11,000 buyers, with expectations a further 4600 will be helped before it ends under a statement made in this year’s State Budget — with Spring St indicating they expected the federal scheme to take over.
REIV president Jacob Caine said the federal government’s scheme seemed “dead in the water”.
Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV) president Jacob Caine said the federal government’s scheme seemed “dead in the water”.
“The likely failure of the national scheme and the sun setting on the state scheme here in Victoria leaves thousands of potential first-home buyers in limbo,” Mr Caine said.
“If that were to come to pass, it would be even more critical that the government revisit the issue of stamp duty and give those first-home buyers a significant enough reprieve from that ineffective tax so they have a chance of home ownership.”
He added that this loss of assistance could widen the gap between those supported by the Bank of Mum and Dad and those trying to get into the market independently, which was bad for the entire housing ecosystem.
Australian Green leader Adam Bandt said renters and first-home buyers were at their “breaking point”.
An Allan government spokesman said the federal Greens and Coalition behaved just like its Victorian counterparts — blocking more Australians from owning their own home and putting their political interests first.
“Our Victorian Homebuyer Fund has already helped more than 11,000 Victorian households buy their own home, and more than half are first homeowners,” he said.
“The fund received a further $700 million investment in our most recent Budget, extending it for another year to assist about 4,600 more Victorian households to purchase their own homes.”
Australian Greens leader Adam Bandt said renters and first-home buyers were at their “breaking point” and federal government’s housing policy would only push up rents and house prices.
“Labor now has two months to get serious about the housing crisis. The Greens are willing to negotiate,” Mr Bandt said.
“The time is ticking for the Prime Minister to stop bulldozing and let his ministers negotiate with the Greens to pass this bill.”
Teh Demographics Group director Simon Kuestenmacher said shared equity schemes were just “political cosplay” pretending to be tackling housing affordability.
However, The Demographics Group director Simon Kuestenmacher said state and federal shared equity schemes were just “political cosplay” pretending to be tackling housing affordability when they didn’t.
“We could make housing cheaper. It’s easy, but we would need to do it with bipartisan support from the get go and as long as we’re not doing this, I’m pretty bored by all small things,” Mr Kuestenmacher said.
He said if federal and state government’s really wanted to make housing cheaper, they would remove stamp duty and negative gearing.
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