Help to Buy: First Buyers Are Already Moving Into Shared-Equity Homes

The federal Help to Buy shared-equity scheme has moved from announcement to reality. After officially launching in December 2025, the program now has real households with keys in hand. Housing Australia reports that more than 2,300 places have been approved so far, and of those, 278 households have already bought and moved into their homes, with roughly another 2,078 gearing up to purchase.

For first home buyers, that shift from theory to settled sales is the most useful signal yet. Help to Buy is a genuinely different model from the deposit-support schemes most people already know about, and it comes with its own set of advantages and trade-offs. Here is how it works, what the early numbers tell us, and the questions worth asking before you decide whether it is right for you.

What is happening

Help to Buy is the Commonwealth's shared-equity scheme, and it is now operating at scale rather than sitting on paper. The headline figure is that more than 2,300 places have been approved since launch. Within that group, 278 households have already settled and moved in, while around 2,078 more are working through the process towards a purchase. In other words, the first wave of buyers is no longer hypothetical. People are living in homes bought with the government as a part-owner.

That matters because shared equity is unfamiliar to most Australians. Seeing households actually complete the journey, from approval to settlement to moving day, gives later applicants a clearer picture of what they are signing up for.

How shared equity actually works

The core idea is straightforward. Under Help to Buy, an eligible buyer can purchase with a deposit as low as 2%, and the government takes an equity share in the property in exchange for a financial contribution. For a new home, the government can contribute up to 40% of the price. For an existing home, it can contribute up to 30%.

Because the government funds part of the purchase price, your loan is smaller than it would be if you were buying outright. A smaller loan means lower repayments and a smaller deposit to save in the first place. There is also no Lenders Mortgage Insurance on the smaller loan, which can save a sizeable sum. If you are unsure what LMI is or when it normally applies, our guide to Lenders Mortgage Insurance explains the mechanics. For a fuller walk-through of how the scheme is structured and who qualifies, our Help to Buy scheme guide covers the detail.

The trade-offs to weigh fairly

Shared equity is not free money, and it is important to understand the give-and-take rather than gloss over it. The central trade-off is that you share future capital growth with the government in proportion to its equity share. If the government owns 30% of your home and the property rises in value, it is entitled to 30% of that gain when the time comes to settle up. The flip side is that your repayments and deposit hurdle were lower in the meantime, which is the benefit you receive in exchange.

There are other conditions to factor in. The scheme has income and property-price caps, so not every buyer or every home will qualify, and there are limits on the number of places available. It is also worth knowing that you can buy back the government's share over time, so the arrangement does not have to be permanent. If your income grows or your circumstances change, increasing your own ownership stake is an option built into the scheme.

How it differs from the 5% Deposit Scheme

This is the point that causes the most confusion, so it is worth being precise. Help to Buy is shared equity. The separate 5% Deposit Scheme, also known as the First Home Guarantee, is a deposit guarantee, which is a different thing entirely.

Under the First Home Guarantee, the government does not buy a share of your home. Instead it guarantees part of your deposit so you can buy with as little as 5% down and avoid LMI, but you own 100% of the property and keep 100% of any capital growth. Under Help to Buy, the government contributes actual equity, lowers your loan further, and in return owns a slice of the home and a matching slice of its growth. Both can help first home buyers in, but they suit different situations and carry different long-term consequences.

What it means for you

The early settlement numbers confirm that Help to Buy is a working pathway, not just a policy. Whether it is the right one for you depends on how you weigh a lower entry cost now against sharing future growth later. Here are the practical takeaways:

• Understand which scheme you are comparing. Shared equity (Help to Buy) and a deposit guarantee (the 5% Deposit Scheme) are not interchangeable. The ownership and capital-growth outcomes are very different.
• Factor in the growth share. A 2% deposit and a smaller loan are real benefits, but the government's equity stake means you share future gains in proportion to its share. Weigh both sides.
• Check the caps and place limits early. Income and property-price caps apply, and places are limited, so confirm you fit the rules before you fall for a particular home.
• Remember you can buy back the share. The government's equity is not necessarily forever. You can increase your own stake over time as your situation allows.
• Know your real borrowing limit. Work out what you can genuinely afford before you start. Our borrowing power calculator gives you a clear ceiling, and our guide on how much deposit you need to buy a house sets out the upfront costs to budget for.

If you are at the start of the journey, our broader first home buyer guide pulls the whole process together, from saving and pre-approval through to settlement, so you can see where a scheme like Help to Buy fits into the bigger picture.