Government help for single parents buying a home in 2026

Government help for single parents buying a home in 2026 (including how to keep the one you have)

Single parents in Australia have two federal schemes built specifically for them in 2026. The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme lets single parents and single legal guardians buy a home with a deposit as small as 2%, with no income cap, no waitlist and no Lenders Mortgage Insurance. The Help to Buy Scheme goes further: the government contributes up to 30% of the price of an existing home or 40% of a new one, and it includes a provision that lets a single parent who jointly owns a home, often with a former partner, buy out the other person's share and stay put. State and territory grants and stamp duty concessions can stack on top, though most of those are limited to genuine first home buyers.

Why I wrote this one

I sit across the table (or more often, the phone) from single parents every week. Some are starting again after separation. Some are buying for the very first time on one income. And almost all of them have been told, by a friend, a parent, or an ex, that home ownership on a single income "just isn't realistic anymore."

Here's what I know from doing this work: the schemes that exist in 2026 are genuinely better for single parents than anything I've seen in my years in this industry. Not perfect. But better. And the one almost nobody talks about is the Help to Buy buyout provision, which can mean the difference between selling the family home after separation and keeping your kids in their own bedrooms.

So let's walk through it properly.

Can I really buy a home with a 2% deposit as a single parent?

Yes. This is the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (you might remember it as the Home Guarantee Scheme, or the Family Home Guarantee if you looked into this a few years back). For single parents and single legal guardians of at least one dependent child, the minimum deposit is 2% of the purchase price.

Since the scheme expanded on 1 October 2025, the rules are simpler than they used to be:

No income caps. Your income does not restrict your access anymore. No waitlists or place limits. You apply when you are ready, not when a spot opens up. No Lenders Mortgage Insurance. The government guarantees part of your loan to the lender, so LMI, which can run into the tens of thousands, disappears. You do not need to be a first home buyer. You just cannot hold any other property interest once your new home settles. For separated parents who owned before, this matters enormously.

A few honest caveats from the fine print, because I would rather you hear them from me than at the lender's desk:

"Single" has a strict definition. If you are separated but not yet divorced, the scheme does not consider you single. This trips up a lot of my separation clients, so timing your application matters. You must apply on your own. No joint applications under the single parent pathway. The home must be at or below the price cap for your location, and you need to live in it as your home. No investment properties. Scheme eligibility is not loan approval. You still need to meet a participating lender's credit policy, which is where a broker earns their keep.

What is Help to Buy, and how is it different?

Help to Buy is the newer of the two, with applications open since 5 December 2025. It is a shared equity scheme, which means the government contributes money toward your purchase in exchange for a share of the home's value:

You need a minimum 2% deposit. The government contributes up to 30% of the price for an existing home, or up to 40% for a new build. There are 10,000 places each year. Income caps apply: as at July 2026, your taxable income must be at or below $165,000 as a single parent (the cap for individual applicants without children is $103,000). These figures are wage indexed each year, so older guides quoting $160,000 are out of date.

The practical effect is buying power. If a lender will only approve you for a loan that gets you to $500,000, but the government contributes another slice on top, the home you can actually afford changes shape. You own the home and live in it as yours; the government simply shares proportionally in gains or losses when you eventually sell or buy back its share. You can pay the government out over time, through voluntary payments, refinancing, or sale, and the amount is always based on the property's value at the time you pay.

One important restriction: you cannot combine Help to Buy with state shared equity schemes or state government loans and guarantees. You can still use stamp duty concessions and grants alongside it.

I'm separating. Can these schemes help me keep the family home?

This is the question I hear most, and it is where Help to Buy quietly becomes one of the most important policy changes for single parents in years.

Normally, Help to Buy requires that you do not own or beneficially own any property. But the eligibility rules carve out a specific exception: single parents who own property jointly with someone else and want to buy out the other person's share, or who intend to sell their existing ownership, can still apply.

Read that again if you are mid-separation. It means that if you and your former partner jointly own your home, you may be able to use a government equity contribution to buy out their share, rather than being forced to sell, split the proceeds, and start from scratch in a rental.

Here is a simplified picture of how that can look. Say the family home is worth $700,000 and you and your ex each hold half. On your income alone, borrowing $350,000 plus costs to pay them out might be just beyond what a lender will approve. With Help to Buy contributing a share of the property's value, the loan you need shrinks to something a single income can service. Your kids stay in their school. You stay in your street.

The exact structure of a buyout under the scheme depends on your circumstances, your property settlement, and the participating lender's requirements, so please treat this as the start of a conversation rather than a promise. But the door exists now, and before December 2025 it simply did not.

The 2% Deposit pathway can also work here in a different way: because it does not require you to be a first home buyer, a separated parent who sells or transfers out of the old home can use it to buy the next one with a 2% deposit and no LMI.

What do the states and territories add on top?

Most state programs are aimed at genuine first home buyers, meaning people who have never owned. If you owned property with an ex, many of these will not apply to you, which is exactly why the federal single parent pathways matter so much. But if this is your first purchase, the stacking can be significant. As at July 2026:

• NSW: No stamp duty on new or established homes up to $800,000, with a concession up to $1 million, plus a $10,000 grant for new homes.
• Victoria: No stamp duty up to $600,000, concession to $750,000, plus a $10,000 grant for new homes up to $750,000. A temporary off-the-plan duty concession is also running; check the SRO for the current end date before relying on it.
• Queensland: A $30,000 grant for new homes under $750,000 (confirmed continuing for contracts signed from 1 July 2026), and zero stamp duty for first home buyers purchasing new homes or eligible vacant land, with no price cap.
• WA: Thresholds jumped in the May 2026 budget: no duty on homes up to $600,000 with concessions to $800,000, and a $10,000 grant. Note the legislation formally commences in late July 2026, with refunds backdated to the 7 May announcement.
• SA: A grant of up to $15,000 for new homes with no property value cap, plus stamp duty relief on new homes, off-the-plan apartments and vacant land.
• Tasmania, ACT and NT: Each has its own program (Tasmania's established home duty exemption, the ACT's Home Buyer Concession Scheme, and the NT's HomeGrown Territory grants of up to $50,000 for new builds). Some of these have changed or been reviewed during 2026, so verify the current settings with the relevant revenue office before you count on them.

The rule of thumb: federal schemes solve the deposit problem, state schemes solve the upfront cost problem, and the right combination depends on where you live and whether you have owned before.

FAQ

Do I need to be a first home buyer to use the single parent schemes?

No. Both the 5% Deposit Scheme (single parent pathway) and Help to Buy are open to previous home owners. For the 2% deposit pathway you just cannot hold another property interest once your new home settles. Help to Buy normally requires no property ownership, with the specific exception for single parents buying out a joint owner's share or selling their existing ownership.

For the 5% Deposit Scheme, no, not yet. The scheme's definition of single excludes people who are separated but not divorced. This is one of the most common surprises I see, and it is worth factoring into your timeline. Your situation for Help to Buy should be assessed with a participating lender.

Can I use these schemes together with a state grant?

Often, yes. The federal schemes can generally be combined with state stamp duty concessions and first home owner grants. The main restriction is that Help to Buy cannot be combined with state-run shared equity schemes or state government loans and guarantees.

How much income can I earn and still use Help to Buy as a single parent?

As at July 2026, your taxable income (from your most recent ATO Notice of Assessment) must be at or below $165,000. The 2% Deposit Scheme has no income cap at all. A closing thought If you have been telling yourself that home ownership ended the day your relationship did, or that a single income disqualifies you before you start, I want you to know the rules have genuinely changed. Not the vibes. The actual rules. A 2% deposit. No income caps. A government willing to co-invest so you can buy your ex out of the house your kids call home.

None of it is automatic and all of it has fine print. But you do not have to decode that fine print alone at 11pm with a calculator and a knot in your stomach. That is literally my job. Ready to talk it through? Book a free, no-pressure chat and we will map which schemes fit your situation, what you would need to qualify, and what the numbers actually look like on your income.

Sources and references

• Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, single parents:firsthomebuyers.gov.au/australian-government-5-percent-deposit-scheme/single-parents
• Australian Government Help to Buy Scheme: firsthomebuyers.gov.au/australian-government-help-buy-scheme
• First Home Super Saver Scheme: firsthomebuyers.gov.au/first-home-super-saver-scheme
• Revenue NSW, First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme: www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/grants-schemes/assistance-scheme
• State Revenue Office Victoria, Help to buy a property: www.sro.vic.gov.au/buying-property/help-buy-property
• Queensland Revenue Office, First home owner grant: qro.qld.gov.au/property-concessions-grants/first-home-grant/
• WA Government, 2026-27 Housing Taxation Package: https://www.wa.gov.au/government/announcements/2026-27-housing-taxation-package

This article is general information only and does not take your personal circumstances into account. It is not credit advice. Scheme rules, thresholds and price caps change, and eligibility for a scheme does not guarantee loan approval. Please verify current details with the relevant government body and seek advice specific to your situation before making financial decisions.

About Rielle

Rielle Berglund is the founder of Matilda Tree Finance, a mortgage brokerage specialising in women navigating major life transitions, including separation, bereavement and single parenthood. Rielle is an authorised credit representative under Purple Circle Financial Services (Australian Credit Licence 419 372) and a member of the MFAA and AFCA. She is also the founder of Runa, a free financial literacy app for Australian women.