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First lender named for home loan scheme
The first lender for the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme has been announced by the government ahead of its scheduled 1 January 2020 kick-off.
First lender named for home loan scheme
The first lender for the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme has been announced by the government ahead of its scheduled 1 January 2020 kick-off.
According to the Minister for Housing and Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar, the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) has appointed National Australia Bank (NAB) following a competitive procurement process.
It anticipates announcing other successful panel participants soon.
Mr Sukkar said NAB won’t charge eligible customers higher interest rates that equivalent customers outside of the scheme, with the bank also having indicated it will be ready to offer guarantees from the scheme’s commencement date of 1 January 2020.
The scheme was passed through Parliament in October.
NHFIC selects lending panel participants on the basis of a range of criteria, including the competitiveness of their home loan offering, geographic reach and readiness to meet the scheme’s implementation timelines.
The scheme will help more first home buyers purchase a home sooner, according to the Minister, who said, “We want to help make home ownership a reality for more Australians.”
“The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme has been specifically designed to support first home buyers purchase a modest home, getting them into the property market sooner.”
NAB’s chief customer officer for consumer banking, Mike Baird, said: “We are proud to be chosen to partner with the federal government and NHFIC on the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme.”
“This scheme is a fantastic way of helping even more customers, allowing them to potentially save thousands of dollars on their mortgage,” Mr Baird said.
Mr Baird said NAB is the only major bank to have a special rate for first home buyers – 2.88 per cent per annum fixed for two years.
The scheme provides a guarantee that will allow eligible first home buyers on low and middle incomes to purchase a home with a deposit of as little as 5 per cent and is capped to support up to 10,000 loans each financial year, starting from 1 January 2020.
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