The expansion of the Federal Government’s 5% Deposit Scheme has led to house prices skyrocketing.
National home values rose by 1.1%, which was the fastest monthly pace of growth since May 2023, according to Cotality.
This follows accelerating monthly gains since the first rate cut in February, with values also buoyed by seasonality and low levels of stock.
Dwellings within the price caps of the 5% Deposit Scheme increased 1.2% compared to 1% for dwellings above.
The scheme, which began on 1 October, offers unlimited places with browser eligibility, allowing first-home buyers to secure loans with a 5% deposit and without the lender’s mortgage insurance. The price caps of homes available on the scheme vary depending on location.
Houses with an estimated value below the price caps even had a larger outperformance than units.
National House values below the caps were up 1.3% compared to units below the caps rising 1%.
Properties below the price caps had stronger growth than those above the caps in all capital cities, except the ACT and Hobart.
In the regions, VIC, WA, SA and QLD had notably strong outperformance in the low-end of markets in October.
Regional NSW had an unusually high monthly price growth of 1% for home values both above and below the caps, surpassing the average monthly performance of 0.4%.
Sub-markets of Melbourne’s Inner East below the price caps grew 1.7%, outperforming homes above A$950,000, which rose by 0.4%
