Compare Help to Buy (government equity co-purchase) and the First Home Guarantee (5% deposit, no LMI) side by side across repayments, total interest paid, and projected wealth at sale. The tool shows a long-run cost and wealth comparison so first home buyers can weigh the trade-offs between the two schemes for their own circumstances.

What is the difference between Help to Buy and the 5% Deposit Scheme?

The 5% Deposit Scheme (First Home Guarantee) lets you buy a home with as little as a 5% deposit without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance, but you own 100% of the property from day one and take a larger loan. Help to Buy is a shared-equity scheme where the federal government co-purchases up to 40% of a new home (or 30% of an existing one), which cuts your deposit to just 2% and shrinks your loan significantly - but the government retains a proportional share of any capital growth, repayable when you sell or buy out their stake. The core trade-off is lower monthly repayments and deposit requirements with Help to Buy, versus keeping every dollar of future growth under the 5% Deposit Scheme.

Will Help to Buy actually leave me better off financially in the long run?

It depends on your circumstances, the property's growth rate, and what you do with the monthly savings. Because the government owns a share of your home, it receives a proportional slice of any capital gain when you sell - so in a rising market, the 5% Deposit Scheme often produces more personal equity over time. However, if you invest the monthly repayment savings and smaller upfront deposit from Help to Buy into other assets, those gains may partially or fully offset the government's equity share. This tool lets you adjust the property growth rate and an investment return assumption so you can see both scenarios side by side based on the figures you enter - it is an estimate, not a guarantee.

Are there income limits for Help to Buy?

Yes. Under Help to Buy, the income cap is $100,000 per year for singles and $160,000 for couples or single parents (combined taxable income). There is no income cap for the 5% Deposit Scheme as of 1 October 2025, when unlimited places and no income limits were introduced. These figures come from the federal government's scheme terms; the relevant government authority makes the final eligibility determination.

Can I use Help to Buy and the 5% Deposit Scheme at the same time?

No. The two schemes are mutually exclusive - you can only use one federal scheme on a single purchase. You also cannot combine either with the QLD Boost to Buy scheme. However, state-level benefits such as the First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) and stamp duty concessions may still apply alongside whichever single federal scheme you choose, depending on your state and the type of property.

How do the property price caps differ across states?

Both schemes set different caps for capital cities and regional areas, and they vary by state. For Help to Buy, the capital city cap ranges from $600,000 in the NT up to $1,300,000 in NSW, while for the 5% Deposit Scheme, the metro cap goes from $700,000 in TAS up to $1,500,000 in NSW. Regional caps are lower in most states. If the property price you enter exceeds the cap for your selected location, the tool flags that Help to Buy would not be available for that purchase.

What is the First Home Super Saver (FHSS) scheme and does this tool compare it?

FHSS is a separate federal scheme that lets you make voluntary contributions into your superannuation fund and then withdraw them (up to $15,000 per year and $50,000 lifetime per person) to use as a home deposit, taxed at a concessional rate. It is a deposit-building strategy rather than a purchase assistance scheme, so it works differently from Help to Buy or the 5% Deposit Scheme and is not directly compared in this tool. Many buyers use FHSS to build their deposit first, then choose one of the federal purchase schemes - a mortgage broker or financial adviser can help you understand how these layers might interact for your situation.

What happens to the government's equity share if I want to sell or buy them out?

Under Help to Buy, when you sell the property the government receives back the same percentage of the sale price that it originally contributed - so if it put in 30% upfront and the home has grown in value, it receives 30% of the higher sale price. You can also make voluntary buyback payments to reduce the government's share over time, which increases your ownership percentage. The government does not charge rent on its share, but you are responsible for all maintenance costs and council rates on the full property. The scheme administrator makes all final determinations on buyout calculations.