Can a single parent get a home loan in Australia?
Yes. Single parents in Australia can absolutely get a home loan, and there are specific government programs designed to help.
The challenge is rarely whether you qualify in principle. It's that lenders all assess income differently, especially when your situation involves Centrelink, child support, self employed income, or all three at once. One bank might say no flat out. Another might approve the same application with the right structure. The job of a good broker is to know which is which, so you don't waste time getting rejected by lenders who were never going to say yes to your situation in the first place.
Most of my single parent clients walk in convinced they can't buy. Most of them can. Some are closer than they think. A discovery call is the fastest way to find out where you actually stand.
You’re a Single Parent.
You already do the impossible daily.
Now let’s make homeownership possible too.
Between kids, work, bills, and life… who has time for banks, paperwork, or figuring out a deposit?
That’s exactly why I created A Mums Guide to Buying a Home.
A completely free resource to show you exactly what’s possible on one income (and how close you may already be).
How can a single parent buy a home with just a 2% deposit?
The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (formerly the Home Guarantee Scheme) lets eligible single parents and single legal guardians buy a home with a deposit of as little as 2%, without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI).
LMI on a small deposit can easily add $20,000 to $40,000 to your costs. The Scheme eliminates that entirely. The Australian Government guarantees up to 18% of the property value, so the lender treats your loan as if you had a 20% deposit. Same loan, same rate access, much smaller deposit.
Key things to know about the 5% Deposit Scheme for single parents in 2026:
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Deposit: Minimum 2% of the property value as a single parent or single legal guardian.
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No income caps. As of 1 October 2025, the income cap was removed. Your salary, self employed earnings, child support or Family Tax Benefit don't disqualify you on income alone (you still need to meet your lender's normal serviceability assessment).
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No waitlist, no place limits. Previously this scheme was capped at a small number of places per year and they ran out fast. Not anymore. Apply when you're ready.
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No LMI. Up to $40,000+ saved in upfront costs depending on the property price.
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First home buyer or not: You don't need to be a first home buyer. You just can't currently own residential property at the time the loan settles.
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Who qualifies as a single parent: Single (no spouse or de facto partner — if you're separated but not divorced, you're not yet considered single) and the natural parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian of one or more dependent children.
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Citizenship: Australian citizen or permanent resident, at least 18 years old.
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Property must be: Owner-occupied (not an investment), within the price cap for your location, principal and interest loan with a participating lender, owner-occupier loan term up to 30 years.
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Solo application only: No joint applications. The loan is in your name alone.
This is genuinely one of the most significant changes to housing policy for single parents in years. Before October 2025, this scheme was capped at 5,000 places annually with a $125,000 income cap, which locked many people out. The current settings make homeownership realistically achievable for far more single parent families.
You can't apply directly to Housing Australia. Applications go through a participating lender, which is where having a broker who knows the lender panel becomes useful. Not all lenders are on the panel, and the ones that are have different policies on how they treat your income alongside the scheme.
What income do lenders accept from single parents?
This is where it gets messy, because every lender treats single parent income differently. Here's the honest breakdown.
PAYG income (regular employment). The most straightforward. Most lenders accept 100% of your gross PAYG income. Two recent payslips and a contract of employment is usually enough. Probation period rules vary by lender.
Self employed income. Yes, you can absolutely use self employed income. Most lenders want one-two years of tax returns and Notices of Assessment. Some will work off one year if your income trajectory is strong, and a smaller group will accept BAS or business bank statements (alt-doc / low-doc lending) if your tax returns aren't yet finalised. This is exactly the kind of situation where the right lender choice changes everything.
Family Tax Benefit (Part A and B). Many lenders accept Family Tax Benefit as supplementary income, and some will accept it as primary income, but most policies have age-of-children rules. Choosing the right lender for your situation is the entire game here.
Child support and spousal maintenance. Most lenders will consider child support income, but only with evidence: a court order or Child Support Agency assessment, plus bank statements showing regular payments landing in your account. Informal "we just have an arrangement" payments are almost never accepted. If you're not yet receiving child support but will be post-settlement, that's a separate conversation.
Parenting Payment. Acceptance is mixed. Partnered Parenting Payment is accepted by more lenders than Single Parenting Payment. Most lenders won't approve a loan where Parenting Payment is the only income, but it can be counted as supplementary income when combined with employment, FTB, or self employed earnings.
The takeaway: don't assume you don't qualify because one lender said no. The single biggest mistake single parents make is applying to whichever bank they already use, getting declined, and concluding the door is closed. It usually isn't.
Refinancing after separation or divorce
Refinancing after a separation is one of the most common situations I help with, and one of the most stressful for the people going through it. There are usually three things on the table.
Removing your ex from the mortgage. If the property is staying with you under a property settlement, you'll need to refinance into your own name. The lender will reassess the loan against your income alone (plus any acceptable supplementary income). This is essentially a brand new application. The good news: if you've been managing the existing mortgage repayments on time, that's strong evidence of serviceability. The harder news: if your sole name income doesn't service the existing loan amount, you may need to negotiate a smaller settlement, take a longer loan term, or consider government schemes if you qualify (Your broker can help you with this).
Buying out your ex's share. Often handled in the same refinance. The new loan is sized to pay out the existing mortgage plus your ex's settlement amount.
Valuation considerations. The lender will order a fresh valuation of the property. This valuation is what determines your new loan-to-value ratio (LVR), which determines whether you'll need to pay LMI. If the property has grown in value since you bought it, refinancing is often easier. If it's gone backwards, the maths gets tighter.
Things that often catch people out:
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You can usually start the conversation with a broker before your property settlement is finalised. Pre-approvals based on hypothetical settlement scenarios can save weeks once paperwork lands.
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If you're going through a separation but not divorced, you're not yet eligible for the 2% deposit scheme.
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Some lenders won't refinance until the family law settlement is formally documented. Others will work with consent orders or interim agreements. Knowing which is which saves real time.
If you're in this position, a discovery call is genuinely the fastest way to map your options. There's no charge for the conversation, and you'll leave with a clearer picture of what's actually possible.
How Matilda Tree Finance helps single parents
I've sat across from a lot of single parents at the kitchen table, on Zoom, on the phone in the school pickup line. The pattern is almost always the same: smart, capable women carrying enormous mental loads, who've been told by one bank that they don't qualify and assumed that meant the door was closed everywhere.
Most of the time, it isn't. It just means the wrong lender said no.
Here's how working with us actually goes:
1. Free discovery call (30 minutes). We talk through your situation. Income, deposit position, credit, kids, what you're hoping to buy, what's on your mind. No commitment, no obligation. By the end of the call you'll know whether buying is realistic right now, what programs you might qualify for, and what the next steps would look like.
2. If we move forward, we agree the engagement fee in writing. We charge a flat engagement fee that depends on the complexity of your situation: $450 for standard applications, $750 to $950 for more complex ones (multiple applicants, guarantor loans, low-doc or alt-doc), and specialist lending quoted separately. You'll know your exact fee before any work begins. Lender commissions are paid by the bank and disclosed to you in writing.
3. We do the heavy lifting. Lender comparison across our full panel, paperwork, follow-up, advocacy. You don't chase banks. We do.
4. We stay in your corner through to settlement. The average home loan takes six to twelve weeks from first chat to settlement. Through that whole window, you have a broker who knows your file inside out and actually answers the phone.
5. After settlement, we don't disappear. Annual loan reviews, refinance conversations, future planning, all part of the ongoing relationship.
Get your free Mum's Guide to Buying a Home →