Homestart scheme in the Waikato
There are 107 more first home owners in South Waikato since the start of the Government’s Homestart scheme, which replaced the old Kiwisaver First Home Deposit Subsidy a ayear ago in April 2015.
Changes to the Kiwisaver rules also means that people can combine their Homestart grant of up to $10,000 per person or up to $20,000 per couple towards a deposit on a new home.
Under Kiwisaver, a couple each earning $40,000 a year could withdraw up to $29,000 after five years for a house deposit.
It’s pleasing to note that the Homestart Scheme has helped fund 87 new first homes purchases with grants worth $479,000 in the South Waikato region since last year.
Having a deposit big enough to buy a house has always been a big challenge for most young people wanting to own their own home.
Therefore, combining their Homestart grant with the Kiwisaver incentive means a sizeable deposit to buy a first home has become a reality for more people.
If you haven’t already done so, now might be a good time to join Kiwisaver.
Second chance home owners will benefit too from the Government’s latest tweaks to the Kiwisaver withdrawal rules.
I also welcome the government’s latest tweaks to Kiwisaver income and asset caps, which will help the scheme work better for second-chance homebuyers.
As of 1 July 2016, the income cap for people who have previously owned their own home but are struggling to get back into ownership after an event such as a separation or business failure, are removed.
This means a second-chance homeowner whose assets are small will be able to access their Kiwisaver funds to buy a home regardless of how high their income is, which is great news for mid-life, middle-income New Zealanders.
Kiwisaver Homestart is part of the National-led Government’s wide, ongoing programme to improve housing supply and affordability.
The overall programme includes freeing up more land for development, measures to help constrain building material costs and compliance costs, and steps to raise the productivity performance of the construction sector.
Oh wow. Congrats Angela Bridgette Coward