Buying your first home.

First home buyer schemes and grants.

First home buyer schemes and grants.

First Home Owner Grant (FHOG). You may be eligible for the First Home Owner Grant scheme (FHOG). These are government assistance programs that offer first home buyers incentives to access the property market. This can include financial assistance in the form of stamp duty concessions. The grant amount differs between states and territories, as does the eligibility criteria.

Australian Government’s HomeBuilder Scheme. If you’re planning on building, you may be eligible for the HomeBuilder Scheme. This offers a $25,000 grant to eligible people planning on either building a new home or undertaking large-scale renovations to an existing home.

Home loan honours.

Home loan honours.

Consider an offset account. An offset account is a savings or transaction account linked to your mortgage. Your offset account balance reduces the amount you owe on your mortgage. This reduces the amount of interest you pay and helps you pay off your mortgage faster.

Make higher repayments. Another way to get ahead on your mortgage is to make more than your minimum repayments. The extra money will help to pay off your mortgage sooner.

Make extra payments. Extra repayments on your mortgage can cut your loan by years. Putting your tax refund or bonus into your mortgage could save you thousands in interest. Making extra repayments now will also give you a buffer if interest rates rise in the future.

Switch to fortnightly payments. If you're currently paying monthly, consider switching to fortnightly repayments. By paying half the monthly amount every two weeks you'll make the equivalent of an extra month's repayment each year (as each year has 26 fortnights).

The legal stuff.

This is general information only and you should consider if these products are appropriate for you.

Terms, conditions, fees and charges apply. Applications are subject to credit approval.