Broker guide
Shared Equity Home Buying Schemes in Australia
Compare shared equity scheme structures, live application status, lender routes, ownership obligations and exit questions across Australia.
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A shared equity scheme helps a buyer purchase a home by funding part of its price in exchange for a share of its value. The buyer needs a mortgage for the remaining funded amount, and the scheme’s interest must be dealt with when they sell or buy it out.
For Australian mortgage brokers, location and live intake decide the first shortlist. Ownership terms then decide whether the route fits a client’s plans for renovations, refinancing or moving home.
Identify the Available Programmes
Help to Buy is open nationally, while several state routes serve particular properties or buyers. The Victorian and New South Wales programmes below have closed to new participants, but existing agreements continue.
The following status comparison is last checked on 3 October 2026. An open programme still requires an available place, an eligible property and finance approval.
| Programme | Jurisdiction and authority | New-application status |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Government Help to Buy | All states and territories. Housing Australia administers the Commonwealth scheme | Open through participating lenders |
| Boost to Buy | Queensland. Queensland Treasury Corporation provides the scheme, with Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority administering applications | Round 2 regional Queensland appointments remain available through Unity Bank. South East Queensland appointments are fully allocated |
| Urban Connect Shared Equity Home Loan | Western Australia. Keystart provides the mortgage and the Housing Authority co-owns the home | Open for eligible new apartments, townhouses, units and villas |
| Keystart Shared Ownership Home Loan | Western Australia. Keystart and the Housing Authority | Applications depend on the particular loan and eligible property. SharedStart, GoodStart and Sole Parent are distinct routes |
| MyHome | Tasmania. Homes Tasmania is the government co-owner, with Bank of us providing finance | Open through Bank of us and its accredited brokers |
| Shared Equity Option | South Australia. HomeStart provides the primary loan and shared appreciation loan | Open for eligible HomeStart borrowers |
| Pathways Shared Equity Loan | Queensland. Queensland Government housing finance | Available to eligible public-housing tenants buying their current government-owned home |
| Victorian Homebuyer Fund | Victoria. State Revenue Office administers the state interest | Closed to new participants. Existing agreements and annual reviews continue |
| Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper | New South Wales. Revenue NSW | Pilot closed on 30 June 2024. Existing participants retain their obligations and support |
Help to Buy’s official programme page confirms nationwide availability. Queensland Treasury’s Boost to Buy availability notice separates regional intake from exhausted South East Queensland appointments.
Victoria announced its closure on 10 September 2025. Its earlier extension beyond June 2025 does not make the Victorian Homebuyer Fund available for a new client today.
Shared equity is different from a cash first home owner grant. A shared equity provider retains an interest whose payout can change with property value. Grant eligibility and any permitted combination must be assessed separately.
Compare the Equity Structures
Shared ownership can mean actual co-ownership or a financial interest secured over a home the buyer owns. Those structures create different consent and payout rules.
All terms below are checked as at October 2026. HomeStart’s stated eligibility limits come from its determination effective 1 June 2026, and MyHome’s current guide is dated July 2026.
| Programme | Contribution or retained interest | What the buyer owns |
|---|---|---|
| Help to Buy | Up to 40% for a new home or 30% for an existing home | Buyer owns the property. Housing Australia takes a second mortgage securing the government’s financial interest |
| Boost to Buy | Up to 30% for a new home or 25% for an existing home | Buyer is registered owner. A security trustee holds a mortgage securing lender and scheme obligations |
| Urban Connect Shared Equity | Housing Authority contribution up to 35%, capped at $250,000 | Buyer and Housing Authority co-own the property. The buyer’s share depends on their financial circumstances |
| Other Keystart shared ownership | Housing Authority share depends on the loan and buyer | Fixed shared ownership retains the authority’s share. Flexible shared ownership permits increases in the buyer’s ownership |
| MyHome | New-home contribution up to 40% or $300,000. Existing-home contribution up to 30% or $150,000. The lower limit applies | Buyer and Homes Tasmania are co-owners |
| HomeStart Shared Equity Option | Between 5% and 25% of the lower purchase price or valuation, subject to a $200,000 maximum | Buyer owns the home and shares its value with HomeStart under an additional loan |
| Pathways | Tenant must buy at least 60%, or more if their assessed capacity permits | Tenant buys a share of their public-housing home while government retains the balance |
| Victorian and NSW closed programmes | Existing government interest remains under the participant’s agreement | Closure does not cancel the government’s interest or release consent requirements |
Boost to Buy has a valuation trap. Its contribution percentage uses the purchase price, but its equity interest uses the lower of that price and the lender valuation. A lower valuation therefore produces a larger government interest than the contribution percentage suggests.
HomeStart’s Shared Equity Option also distinguishes sale from refinance. HomeStart shares gains and losses on sale, but shares only gains when the borrower refinances. A falling market therefore has different consequences for those two exits.
Compare Eligibility and Lender Routes
Programme eligibility and mortgage approval are separate assessments. A small deposit or a government contribution does not establish that the buyer can repay the required loan.
The application routes and lender rules below are checked as at October 2026. MyHome uses Bank of us’s July 2026 guide, while HomeStart’s limits are effective from 1 June 2026.
| Programme | Buyer and income tests | Property and contribution tests | Confirmed route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Help to Buy | Citizenship, age, current ownership and indexed taxable-income tests. Returning owners can qualify | Location price cap, eligible home and maximum reasonable deposit, with a 2% minimum | Participating lender submits to Housing Australia. Accredited broker channels are permitted |
| Boost to Buy | First-home ownership history, citizenship or permanent residency and taxable income. Current entry limits are $155,000 for individuals or $232,000 for joint applicants and eligible single parents | Maximum $1 million property price, 2% deposit and purchase within the region of provisional approval | Unity Bank submits the scheme application to the administrative authority |
| Urban Connect Shared Equity | Keystart’s individual income limit is $128,000. Joint applicants or families have a $197,000 limit | $800,000 property cap, 2% deposit and eligible new dwelling. Land-size restrictions apply | Keystart direct or its broker network |
| Other Keystart shared ownership | Loan-specific circumstances, such as public tenancy or sole-parent retention of the family home | Eligible property and the particular fixed or flexible agreement | Keystart assesses the selected loan |
| MyHome | Age, Tasmanian residency, citizenship or permanent residency, ownership, household income and assets. Defined grant or tenant exemptions apply | Eligible purchase type, property cap and minimum 2% deposit | Bank of us direct or an accredited broker |
| HomeStart | Net household income up to $120,000, no other property and retained savings up to $40,000 | Owner-occupied South Australian home, purchase cap $750,000 and primary HomeStart loan eligibility | HomeStart direct or an accredited broker |
| Pathways | Eligible Queensland public-housing tenant who cannot afford full ownership | Buy current government home, with valuation and affordable share assessed by housing finance | Queensland Government housing finance enquiry and assessment |
| Victorian and NSW closed programmes | Existing participant’s continuing eligibility | Existing home and agreement only | Current lender and administering authority for participant requests |
Help to Buy’s participating lender list names Commonwealth Bank and Bank Australia. It also lists Teachers Mutual Bank, Health Professionals Bank, Firefighters Mutual Bank and UniBank.
Use the national Help to Buy application guide for the complete national process. When comparing state alternatives, record income on each programme’s actual basis. HomeStart’s after-tax household limit cannot be compared directly with another scheme’s taxable or gross income limit.
MyHome’s income tests also distinguish new and existing homes and household composition. Its current application page supplies the July 2026 guide and declaration forms. A first-home buyer label alone does not decide eligibility across these programmes.
Compare Ongoing Duties and Exit
The future cost of shared equity depends on the agreement’s valuation rules, consent requirements and repayment triggers. Explain those terms before the client chooses a mortgage pathway.
The following obligations are checked as at October 2026, using MyHome’s July 2026 guide and HomeStart’s June 2026 determination where applicable.
| Programme | Living in and improving the home | Repayment, refinancing and sale |
|---|---|---|
| Help to Buy | Principal residence, maintenance and insurance obligations apply. Notify Housing Australia before major renovations or sale. Refinancing requires approval from the existing lender and Housing Australia. Refinancing to a non-participating lender requires full government-share buyout | Partial voluntary repayment is at least 5% of current property value, rounded to the nearest $1,000. Valuation and administration costs apply |
| Boost to Buy | Principal residence and continuing eligibility obligations apply. Renovation gains remain in the value used for the government’s payout | Voluntary payments reduce the interest by at least five percentage points. Reducing it below 5% in the first two years needs consent. Sale within two years also needs consent |
| Keystart shared ownership | Buyer pays ownership costs. Allowable owner improvements can reduce the value used to calculate the Housing Authority’s share | Flexible-loan refinance must fund both Keystart debt and the authority’s current share. Fixed shared ownership cannot refinance. Flexible sale gives the authority first refusal |
| MyHome | Live in the home. Structural improvements need Bank of us, Homes Tasmania and insurer approval, with before-and-after valuation | Government share must be paid out within 30 years. Buyout or sale uses market value. Refinancing outside Bank of us does not retain MyHome |
| HomeStart | Occupy the home and retain responsibility for its costs. HomeStart’s percentage stays unchanged after improvements, so it shares the resulting value gain | Voluntary repayments of $10,000 or more require valuation. Sell, refinance to another lender or voluntarily pay out to exit |
| Pathways | Tenant pays whole-property ownership costs without rent on government’s share. Structural improvements can receive a value credit | Additional share purchases are at least 5% and use an independent valuation. Sell to realise the buyer’s share |
| Victorian Homebuyer Fund | Annual review and insurance continue. Structural changes or permit-required works need approval. Seek approval for works costing $10,000 or more | Refinance and sale need approval. Voluntary payments must reduce the state share by at least five percentage points and be at least $10,000 |
| NSW Home Buyer Helper | Existing participants retain their scheme duties. Renovation and change requests remain available through the participant portal | Existing participants can refinance between Bendigo Bank and Unity Bank. Voluntary equity reductions and sale remain available |
Help to Buy can adjust the government’s percentage after qualifying improvements. MyHome also permits an agreed adjustment after improvements. In contrast, Boost to Buy and HomeStart include renovation-driven gains in the value shared with the provider.
For Victoria, approved renovations receive separate valuation treatment so participants do not repay the government for the increase those works create. Its ongoing participant rules still apply after intake closes.
Explain the Buyout with a Worked Example
In a hypothetical Help to Buy case, the government holds 30% of a home now valued at $700,000. Buying out that unchanged share requires $210,000 before valuation and other costs. Repaying the mortgage principal alone does not buy out the government’s interest.
If the same client buys back five percentage points, that share costs $35,000 at the assumed current value. The government then retains 25%. This example assumes no qualifying improvement adjustment and is not a payout formula for HomeStart or another scheme.
Questions to Resolve Before the Client Commits
Use these questions to explain the written agreement and the client’s intended exit.
- Can the buyer live in the property for the required period, including if employment or family circumstances change?
- Who approves renovations, and does the scheme exclude their added value from its payout calculation?
- Does the chosen loan have fixed or flexible shared ownership, and can the buyer increase their share?
- What minimum equity purchase is permitted, and who pays for valuations, legal work or transfer duty?
- Which lenders can refinance while the arrangement continues, and when must the whole government share be repaid?
- Does a higher income, inheritance or ownership change trigger a review or repayment?
- If a sale price is below the valuation, which value sets the provider’s payout and who funds a shortfall?
Choose the route that fits the client’s location and borrowing capacity, then show how their likely exit works under that specific agreement. A larger initial contribution can reduce mortgage debt while leaving a larger future buyout to fund.
