Buy your own home with a low deposit of 2-5% and no Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) on your Westpac home loan.
Buying a home is a big financial commitment. Most lenders require a deposit of at least 20%, or Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) applies, making saving for a deposit a real barrier to home ownership.
With the Australian Government initiated Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS), you could fast-track your home ownership dreams with one of three guarantee options.
Shave years off the usual time it would take to save, with a low deposit of 2-5%.
No Lenders Mortgage Insurance means you could save thousands.
Benefit from interest rates normally reserved for deposits of 20% or more.
To decide which of the 3 guarantees is the right fit, tell us who you are:
You are: Single parent or single legal guardian with at least one dependent child.
You are: Eligible home buyer purchasing in a regional area.
You are: Eligible home buyer purchasing a home sooner.
Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) will NOT be applicable if your loan is supported by a guarantee under the Home Guarantee Scheme, but so that you understand what it is, it’s a charge that most lenders require if a home loan deposit is less than 20%. This protects the lender if you can’t repay the loan. It can either be added to your loan or paid upfront.
As you’ll not be required to pay LMI, even though your deposit may be as low as 2% (Family Home Guarantee) or 5% (First Home Guarantee or Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee), you’ll make significant savings.
There are two parts to a home loan balance:
Principal and interest repayments pay off the amount you borrowed (the principal) and the interest, plus any fees.
By the end of the loan term (up to 30 years), you will have repaid the amount borrowed and the total interest owed, meaning your home will be mortgage-free.
We calculate your interest in two steps.
First, we multiply the balance on your loan by your interest rate and divide by 365 days in a year. This shows your daily interest charges.
We then add together your daily interest charges for every day in each month, which produces the monthly interest charge shown on your statement.
Finally, we divide this up according to your preferred repayment frequency, whether that’s weekly, fortnightly or monthly. This figure is your repayment amount.
If your loan balance was $500,000 with an interest rate of 4.93% p.a. and monthly repayments, the calculation might look like this:
500,000 x 0.0493 / 365 = $67.53 interest per day
$67.53 x 30 days in September = $2,026 interest for September
You can use our Mortgage Repayment Calculator to estimate repayments and interest charges over the life of a loan. You can also use the calculator to check the effect that extra repayments could have on your home loan.
With a variable rate home loan, your variable rate changes in line with market interest rates. Choose from our basic loan and standard home loan with offset - and get ahead on your home loan with no cap on extra repayments and no associated break costs.
With fixed rate home loans, your fixed rate won’t be affected by interest rate rises during your 1-5 fixed rate period – so you'll know exactly what your interest rate and repayments will be throughout your fixed rate loan term.
Or you can get the best of both worlds by splitting your balance into separate variable and fixed rate loan amounts.
Many things affect how fast you can pay down your home loan balance, and how much interest you pay.
Extra repayments. The simplest way to pay off your loan sooner is to make additional repayments on top of the repayments you’re obliged to make. Bear in mind, if you have a fixed rate with us, you can only make up to $30,000 in additional repayments during the fixed rate period, before break costs apply.
Repayment type. You'll need to pay principal and interest repayments (P&I) if you're eligible for one of the guarantees under the Home Guarantee Scheme, meaning you'll pay off both parts of your home loan (the principal loan amount, plus interest). Read more about repayment types.
Weekly or fortnightly repayments. Choosing the right repayment frequency can make a difference over time, as well – choosing true fortnightly repayments when you apply will allow you to make the equivalent of one extra repayment per year, given there are 26 fortnights in a year.
Offset. If you link an offset account to your Rocket variable home loan, depositing your savings into this account will help to reduce the interest payable on your principal. Calculate how much you could save with an offset account.
Home (also known as Building) Insurance covers your home’s physical structures and fixtures, including your garage, fences and paved driveways. It also includes built-in appliances like hot water systems and air-conditioners.
Contents Insurance covers personal belongings at your home, like your furniture, carpet, appliances and clothing. It also includes your BBQ, outdoor furniture and kid’s play equipment.
Use the Regional Checker to enter the suburb (or postcode) of your current home and the suburb (or postcode) you’d like to purchase in.
Yes, it could affect your eligibility as during the entire period that the guarantee is in place, you must:
