Help to Buy Scheme on the Northern Beaches, 2026 Guide
If you're trying to buy on the Northern Beaches with a modest deposit, the federal Help to Buy scheme is one of the most significant pathways available right now. Launched in December 2025, it lets the government co-own a share of your home so you borrow less, pay less in interest each month, and avoid lenders mortgage insurance entirely. For buyers who've been priced out by the deposit hurdle rather than their income, that's a meaningful shift.
The scheme is not without its conditions. The income cap, the price cap and the requirement to buy through one of two participating lenders mean Help to Buy suits a specific buyer profile, and knowing whether you fit it matters before you start building your savings plan around it. On the Northern Beaches, where even unit prices in suburbs like Dee Why and Manly Vale sit well above the national average, the $1,300,000 Sydney price cap shapes what is actually reachable under the scheme.
Our team works with first home buyers and eligible re-entrants across the Northern Beaches, comparing options across 60+ lenders. The first home loan side of this is where most of the difference is made, and Help to Buy is one of several pathways worth mapping against your own position.
Key takeaways
- Help to Buy requires just a 2% deposit with up to 40% government equity.
- The Sydney price cap is $1,300,000, covering units in several Northern Beaches suburbs.
- Income must be under $100,000 single or $160,000 for a couple or single parent.
What is the Help to Buy scheme and how does it work for Northern Beaches buyers?
Help to Buy is a federal shared-equity scheme where Housing Australia co-purchases a share of your home alongside you, reducing the amount you need to borrow. For a new build the government takes up to 40% equity; for an existing home it takes up to 30%. You put in a minimum 2% deposit, borrow the rest from a participating lender, and pay no lenders mortgage insurance on the whole transaction.
You own the property outright and live in it as your principal place of residence. The government's share sits quietly on title and earns its proportion of any capital gain or loss when you eventually sell, refinance the share out, or buy the government's portion incrementally over time. You are not paying rent on their share or servicing their equity, which is the key mechanical difference from a traditional co-ownership arrangement.
For a Northern Beaches buyer, the practical effect is a much smaller loan. At a $1,200,000 purchase price with a 30% government share and a 2% buyer deposit, you're borrowing around $816,000 rather than $1,176,000. The monthly repayment difference on that gap is significant, and no LMI is payable on either side of the transaction.
Who is eligible for Help to Buy on the Northern Beaches?
Eligibility runs on four main tests, and all four must be satisfied at the time of application.
The four eligibility tests:
- › Income: taxable income under $100,000 for a single applicant or under $160,000 for a couple or single parent, assessed on the prior year's ATO Notice of Assessment. The caps are indexed to wages each 1 July.
- › Citizenship: Australian citizens only. Permanent residents and temporary visa holders do not qualify.
- › Property ownership: you must not currently own or have an interest in any other real property in Australia or overseas. Re-entrants who previously owned but no longer do may qualify.
- › Residency obligation: you must live in the property as your principal place of residence for the duration of the scheme's involvement.
Help to Buy cannot be combined with another shared-equity scheme or government loan. It can be used alongside the First Home Owner Grant and transfer duty concessions where those conditions are separately met, because stamp duty relief and grants are not shared-equity instruments.
We regularly see buyers assume they won't meet the income test because they've had a strong year, without realising the cap applies to the prior financial year's ATO assessment, not their current pay. That single clarification changes the picture for a lot of people.
Damian Wallace · Director and Principal Broker, Mortgage Brokers Northern Beaches · Chat to Damian →
What does the $1,300,000 Sydney price cap actually cover on the Northern Beaches?
All 44 suburbs in the Mortgage Brokers Northern Beaches service area sit within Greater Sydney, which means the Help to Buy price cap is $1,300,000 uniformly. That is lower than the First Home Guarantee's $1,500,000 cap, and it matters enormously for what is actually purchasable under the scheme on the Northern Beaches.
CoreLogic data shows every house median across the approved suburb list sits well above $2,100,000, meaning no house purchase on the Northern Beaches falls within the cap. Help to Buy on the Northern Beaches is, in practice, a units-only scheme. The cap-eligible unit suburbs are those where medians sit under $1,300,000: Dee Why at approximately $960,000, Manly Vale at approximately $1,067,000, Narrabeen at approximately $1,230,000, and Avalon Beach at approximately $1,250,000. Freshwater units at approximately $1,285,000 are close to the boundary and worth checking for specific properties.
Units sitting around or above the cap, and therefore outside Help to Buy's reach, include Newport at approximately $1,307,500, Queenscliff at approximately $1,350,000, and Balgowlah at approximately $1,411,000. These sit within the First Home Guarantee's $1,500,000 cap and remain accessible under that separate pathway, but not under Help to Buy.
How the two first-home schemes compare:
- › Help to Buy: 2% deposit · up to 40% government equity · $1,300,000 Sydney cap · income tested · CBA or Bank Australia only
- › First Home Guarantee (5% Deposit Scheme): 5% deposit · government guarantee, no equity share · $1,500,000 Sydney cap · no income test · broader lender panel
For a buyer at or near the income ceiling, the First Home Guarantee's larger cap and wider lender access will often be the better-matched pathway, even though it requires a higher deposit.
Source: CoreLogic (via YIP, mid-2026) and Housing Australia.
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How does Help to Buy interact with other first-home buyer schemes?
Help to Buy can be used alongside the NSW First Home Owner Grant and the NSW transfer duty concession, provided you qualify for those separately. The FHOG pays $10,000 on new homes valued under $750,000, which rules out almost every property on the Northern Beaches at current prices. The duty concession provides a full exemption under $800,000 and a sliding concession between $800,000 and $1,000,000, and as CoreLogic data shows, the cheapest unit medians on the Northern Beaches sit around $960,000, meaning most buyers here receive only partial duty relief at best.
What Help to Buy cannot be combined with is another shared-equity or government home ownership loan. If you're participating in any state-backed equity or loan scheme, you cannot simultaneously access Help to Buy. In NSW that is largely a non-issue: the NSW Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper closed to new applicants on 30 June 2024 and is no longer available to new buyers. Help to Buy is the live shared-equity pathway for Northern Beaches buyers.
The First Super Saver Scheme is still compatible with Help to Buy. If you've been making voluntary super contributions, you can release up to $50,000 from super toward the 2% deposit requirement, which meaningfully reduces the cash savings burden before application.
Source: Housing Australia and Revenue NSW.
When does Help to Buy not make sense for a Northern Beaches buyer?
The income cap is the most common disqualifier. If your taxable income from the prior financial year exceeded $100,000 as a single applicant or $160,000 as a couple, you cannot access the scheme regardless of how much you've saved or how modest the property you're targeting is. Buyers who earn just above the threshold often find the First Home Guarantee the more practical route, since it carries no income test and reaches a $1,500,000 price cap.
The two-lender panel is a genuine constraint worth thinking through. Help to Buy currently operates only through CBA and Bank Australia. That is not a large competitive pool, and the loan terms, rates and credit policies of those two lenders may not suit every borrower's financial profile. A buyer with a strong deposit and income near the ceiling is often better placed borrowing at 85% or 90% LVR through a broader lender panel without a government equity share complicating the title.
If you're planning to upgrade in three to five years, the government equity stake can also complicate the next transaction. When you sell or refinance the share out, the government receives its proportion of the property's value at that point. In a rising market that share grows, and buyers intending a short hold should weigh that against the deposit saving on the way in.
In most cases I'd rather see a buyer run both pathways side by side before committing to Help to Buy. The narrower lender panel and the government equity stake are real trade-offs, and for some buyers the First Home Guarantee gets them to the same result with more flexibility on the other side.
Damian Wallace · Director and Principal Broker, Mortgage Brokers Northern Beaches · Chat to Damian →
How do you apply for Help to Buy on the Northern Beaches, step by step?
Step 1: Talk to us
We map your income, deposit and target suburb against the scheme's eligibility tests and the $1,300,000 price cap, so you know whether Help to Buy or an alternative pathway is the right starting point.
Step 2: Confirm your eligibility and prepare your documents
Your prior year ATO Notice of Assessment, proof of citizenship, and evidence that you hold no current property interest are the core documents. We walk through what each lender requires and flag anything likely to slow the process.
Step 3: Apply through a participating lender
Help to Buy currently operates through CBA and Bank Australia. We prepare your application for the appropriate lender and submit it alongside the Housing Australia scheme approval, managing both processes in parallel.
Step 4: Exchange, settlement and beyond
Once approved, you exchange contracts and settle in the normal NSW way. We stay across the process through to settlement and can help you plan for buying out the government's equity share when you're in a position to do so.
What approval challenges do Help to Buy applicants face on the Northern Beaches?
The income assessment uses the prior financial year's Notice of Assessment, which means buyers who've had a recent pay rise may be assessed on a lower income than they currently earn. That cuts both ways: a buyer who earned well above the cap last year but has since changed roles may qualify despite their current income looking too high.
Common approval hurdles for Help to Buy applicants:
- › Price cap and stock availability: the $1,300,000 cap limits Northern Beaches buyers to a narrow slice of the unit market. Finding a qualifying property in the right suburb requires planning, not just an approved application.
- › Lender credit policy: CBA and Bank Australia each apply their own serviceability and credit criteria on top of the scheme's eligibility rules. Passing the scheme test does not guarantee loan approval.
- › Place limits: the scheme offers 10,000 places for 2026-27. Applications are assessed in order of receipt, so timing matters.
- › Existing property interests: a part share in a family property or an overseas property interest can disqualify an otherwise eligible applicant. This is worth checking before applying.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Help to Buy to buy a house on the Northern Beaches?
No. Every house median across the Northern Beaches sits well above $2,100,000, far exceeding the $1,300,000 Sydney price cap. Help to Buy is a units-only pathway on the Northern Beaches at current prices.
Does Help to Buy affect how much I can borrow?
Yes, favourably. Because the government takes a share of the purchase price, your loan is smaller, so your borrowing capacity goes further relative to the property price and monthly repayments are lower.
Is Help to Buy better than the First Home Guarantee for Northern Beaches buyers?
It depends on your income and deposit. Help to Buy suits buyers under the income cap with a minimal deposit; the First Home Guarantee suits those earning above the cap or targeting units above $1,300,000, since its price cap reaches $1,500,000 with no income test.
Can a couple where only one person is a first home buyer use Help to Buy?
No. Both applicants must satisfy all eligibility criteria, including the requirement that neither currently owns or has an interest in property. A couple where one partner owns property cannot use the scheme.
What happens to the government's equity share if I sell?
Housing Australia receives its proportional share of the sale price at settlement. If the property has risen in value, the government's share grows with it; if it has fallen, their share falls proportionally.
Should I use a mortgage broker or go directly to CBA or Bank Australia for Help to Buy?
A mortgage broker, every time. A broker maps your eligibility, compares Help to Buy against the First Home Guarantee and other pathways, and manages both the scheme approval and the lender application simultaneously, so nothing falls through the gap between the two processes.
Your Next Steps
Help to Buy is a genuinely useful pathway for Northern Beaches buyers who fit its income and price criteria, but it sits alongside several other first-home schemes, and the right one depends on your deposit, your income, and the specific unit you're targeting. Getting the scheme wrong at the start costs time and places with a limited annual allocation.
If Help to Buy is on your horizon, the next step is simple. Get in touch with the Mortgage Brokers Northern Beaches team or call 0403 316 686. We'll work through where you stand across our 60+ lender panel and map the most suitable pathway for your situation.
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External Resources
Mortgage Brokers Northern Beaches, Dee Why and the Northern Beaches. This is general information only - this article does not constitute financial advice. Please consider your own circumstances and seek professional advice before making any financial decisions.
