Australia’s Help to Buy scheme to get more people owning homes opens next week. Here’s what you need to know

The new program, launching on 5 December after political delays, was part of Labor’s 2022 election pledge

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The federal government’s low-deposit, shared equity scheme will open for applications next week in an initiative designed to pave the way for higher levels of home ownership.

The “Help to Buy” program was part of Labor’s 2022 election platform, but the bill was delayed in parliament amid a battle over competing housing policies and even briefly emerged as a potential trigger for a double dissolution election.