‘Viable option’: Super rescues first home buyers from rental market

First home buyers are dipping into their superannuation funds amid soaring rental prices across the country. Here’s what we know.

John and Tammy Lambert in front of their new home in Bellbird Park , Brisbane. pic Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

RISING rental prices across Australia are seeing first home buyers dip into their superannuation fund to fast track purchasing a property.

IT Support specialist John Lambert and his wife Tammy recently moved from North Lakes to Bellbird Park after an 18 month search for their first home.
“I like new homes, I’m not a renovator, we had a choice of a number of lots, there were 6-8 different land and home packages”, Mr Lambert said.

“We were originally looking in the Ripley/Springfield area, then we saw something come up about the Bellbird Park house and land packages.

“We went through a company we found on Facebook where you can use part of your super to make a 20% deposit, we were only out of pocket a few thousand dollars.

“Bellbird Park is a nice quiet area, it’s nice to be in an urban/semirural environment where you’ve got lots of bushland.

Mr Lambert said he hoped others would be able to tap into the same opportunity to use his super towards as deposit as he did.

“I think you need at least $150,000 in your super so there’s a restriction there.

“For those buyers in their late 30s to 40s I think it’s a viable option”.

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AVID Property Group General Manager Bruce Harper said buyers wanting to get a foothold in the market are facing longer time frames from choosing their block to getting approval.

“The uncertainty around when interest rates will stabilise and if we may or may not have reached peak will undoubtedly continue to spook buyers”, Mr Harper said.

“Until certainty returns to the market, we won’t see a strong recovery.

“Departing from the typical instalment-based residential building contract, Villaworld Homes offers a single fixed-price house and land contract with a minimal deposit.

“Buyers don’t pay another cent until the home – which includes airconditioning, window blinds, fencing, a driveway, and landscaping – is completed”.