After 12 years as the opposition, Labor’s first week as our new government has flown by. The cost of living was one of the biggest topics of the election campaign, with one of the major issues addressed being housing supply and affordability.

So how does Labor plan to tackle this issue? It’s no small task. With many industry leaders noting construction costs, high inflation, labour shortages, and interest rate rises are all weighing on the construction sector, which in turn has been affecting the residential and commercial property supply.

Elite Agent has summed up Labor’s intentions to introduce a new shared-equity housing scheme. In short, the scheme is intended to assist eligible homebuyers, not just first home buyers, with an equity contribution of up to 40 per cent of the purchase price of a new home, and 30 per cent of the purchase price for an existing home. But, the eligible homebuyer is required to have a deposit of 2 per cent, plus quality for a standard home loan from a participating lender to ultimately finance the remainder of the house purchase.

Other qualification criteria includes:

• Taxable income of up to $90,000 for individuals or $120,000 for couples
• Must be an Australian citizen       
• Not currently own or have an interest in a residential dwelling

If you’re interested in buying in Melbourne, and don’t know where to start, contact us today to see how we can MAKE IT EASY for you.