Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme 2026 — No Income Caps, No Waitlist

What changed from the old Home Guarantee Scheme?

From 1 October 2025, the Home Guarantee Scheme was rebranded and expanded as the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme.

The current scheme has no income caps, no waitlists and unlimited places for eligible buyers.

Key features

• Minimum 5% deposit for eligible first-home buyers (or buyers who have not owned Australian property/land in the previous 10 years).

• No Lenders Mortgage Insurance under the scheme.

• Australian citizen or permanent resident, age 18+, owner-occupier requirements and participating-lender credit approval still apply.

• Eligible home types include new/existing houses, townhouses, apartments, off-the-plan, house-and-land packages and qualifying vacant land/build arrangements.

NSW price caps

The current NSW cap is $1,500,000 for Sydney/capital-city and listed regional-centre areas, and $800,000 for other NSW areas.

Both purchase price and lender-assessed home value must be within the applicable cap.

5% deposit does not mean automatic loan approval

The government guarantee supports the lender but the lender still assesses serviceability and credit under its own policy. Your safe personal budget may also be lower than the scheme price cap.

Next step

Australia Buyer Roadmap: https://www.eltnetwork.com/post/buy-property-australia-2026-buyer-roadmap

Message FIVE with suburb + expected price + deposit amount if you want help organising scheme questions before you speak with a participating lender.

Thao Pham | 0452 526 888 | info@eltnetwork.com | Class 1 Licensed Real Estate Agent — Licence No. 20375265

General information only; a participating lender confirms final eligibility and loan approval.

Sources

Australian Government First Home Buyers — 5% Deposit Scheme, current 2026 guidance.

Australian Government First Home Buyers — Property Price Caps.