Albury Wodonga News

A new Australian Government scheme being offered by Australian Military Bank from Saturday February 1^st will potentially provide a new and sizeable housing stimulus to Albury/Wodonga.

The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS) is being offered by The Australian Government to 10,000 eligible applicants who will receive a limited guarantee to purchase a first home for as little as 5% deposit without the requirement for Lenders Mortgage Insurance . 

The predicted uplift will be driven by this new scheme which is compatible with other defence and government programs designed to save ADF first home buyers many thousands of dollars.

The saving on Lenders Mortgage Insurance could be in excess of $12,000 for buyers of properties between $300-$400k with a 5% deposit.  

According to Australian Military Bank’s CEO John Ford, “There is definitely a potential boost to housing demand in the area given that first home buyers in the ADF can not only access the FHLDS scheme with us but they can use it in conjunction with a range of other unique military benefits and government schemes to create an unprecedented package of first home ownership incentives”.

• First Home Owners Deposit Scheme – purchase with as little as 5% deposit and the government guaranteeing the other 15% of the deposit removing the lenders mortgage insurance requirement
• DHOAS Loans – Monthly home loan subsidy that increases with the length of Defence service
• First Homeowners Grant  - up to $10,000 for eligible properties
• First Homebuyer Stamp Duty – exemption of stamp duty for eligible properties

Mr Ford continues, “Australian Military Bank is uniquely positioned, we are one of only a few eligible banks who can offer DHOAS and FHLDS in tandem along with the ability to integrate them with other government and defence housing programs.  First home buyers need to be mindful that not all financial institutions can connect them to these substantial savings and they should check that their lender is providing access to all programs they qualify for”.

The new scheme is subject to property value thresholds, for Albury Wodonga properties under $450,000 are eligible in NSW and those under $375,000 qualify in regional Victoria.  The local housing price threshold is far more compatible with average housing prices in the area than those seen in the capital cities.  Applicants in Melbourne have a threshold of $600,000 and in Sydney the price is $700,000.  Ford’s prediction for Albury/Wodonga follows recent reports that cite a surge in first home buyers entering the market driven by low interest rates, access to credit and the hard dollar value of incentives being offered to first home buyers.

About:

Australian Military Bank is a member-owned Mutual bank that has been helping Australian Defence personnel and their families make the most of their money since 1959. As Australia’s longest serving Defence financial institution, AMB specialises in service and products that integrate into the unique aspects of life in the armed services.  As a mutual organisation, Australian Military Bank is run for the benefit of members who are also our shareholders.

Timeline:

• 1959: Founded as the Navy (Civil Staff) Co-op. Ltd.
• 1971: Membership extended to civilian employees of the Army and RAAF in NSW
• 1983: We merge with Army Defence (NSW) Credit Union and rebrand as Australian Defence Credit Union (ADCU)
• 2008: Selected by Department of  Defence as one of three DHOAS home loan providers
• 2014: Achieve in excess of $1 billion funds under management
• 2015: Membership exceeds 50,000 and vote passed to change our name to Australian Military Bank
• 2018: Launch of new Core and Digital Banking offerings 24/7
• 2020: 56,000 members, 4 million+ logins 

Image by mynemesis2011 from Pixabay