A federal housing scheme that has supported more than 300,000 buyers is facing renewed political scrutiny after figures showed around 48,000 permanent residents have used it to enter the property market since mid-2023.
The data, cited widely across media, relates to the federal government’s 5% Deposit Scheme administered by Housing Australia. The program allows eligible buyers to purchase a home with a deposit as low as 5%, with the government guaranteeing part of the loan.
Pauline Hanson criticised the inclusion of non-citizens in the scheme, saying, “Your taxes are helping people who aren’t Australian citizens buy a first home in Australia.”
She added, “Not only are they pushing up home prices for everyone, they’re getting into a home that should have gone to an Australian citizen.”
Hanson called for broader policy changes, including cutting migration, banning foreign ownership, and increasing deportations.
The scheme was expanded in July 2023 to include permanent residents and joint applicants. Since then, more than 48,000 permanent residents have accessed support. Out of more than 300,000 total participants, that equates to roughly 16%, often described in reporting as close to one in five.
Housing Australia said the program has supported a broad mix of buyers. These include almost 60,000 key workers such as teachers and nurses, more than 99,000 buyers in regional areas, and nearly 30,000 newly built homes contributing to supply.
Housing Australia chief executive Scott Langford said, “This represents a significant milestone for Housing Australia and the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme. Working closely with Participating Lenders, the Housing Australia team has successfully scaled the Scheme from 10,000 places in its first year in 2020, to supporting more than 300,000 Australians today to take this important step towards the security of home ownership.”
More than 48,000 permanent residents have accessed support. Out of more than 300,000 total participants, that equates to roughly 16%, often described in reporting as close to one
in five
Executive Leader Emma Jarman said, “We are proud to have supported more than 300,000 Australians into home ownership through the Scheme. Our very first participant in 2020 was a teacher purchasing their first home in regional New South Wales. Since then, thousands more have been able to enter the housing market sooner – including the 300,000th and 300,001st participants, a young couple purchasing their first home in Sydney.”
Migration and population analyst Abul Rizvi said the inclusion of permanent residents follows long-standing policy settings.
He said, “To the Murdoch press it may be ‘incomprehensive’. But since post-war migration program, very rare for permanent residents to be excluded from a Commonwealth or state govt program.”
Rizvi added, “He also said 20% are permanent residents (ie people who could have been living here for years, even decades) and includes joint applicants where one is a citizen (ie an Aussie who has married someone from overseas). OZ citizens can own property overseas. Many do.”
He said, “You assume all permanent residents are new to OZ. Some permanent residents (ie British subjects) can vote and have been living in OZ longer than you have been alive.”
Rizvi added, “Many permanent residents are married to OZ citizens. I have been arguing for a policy tightening for 3 years. I just don’t do it in Hanson fashion.”
“Many permanent residents are married to OZ citizens. I have been arguing for a policy tightening for 3 years. I just don’t do it in Hanson fashion.”
The scheme applies to owner-occupiers and requires applicants to be first-home buyers in Australia, even if they have owned property overseas. It does not extend to foreign investors who are not residents.
Further changes in October 2025 removed income caps, lifted property price thresholds and introduced uncapped places, widening access to the program months before the latest milestone figures were reached.
The debate is unfolding alongside wider concerns about housing affordability. A campaign on change.org calls for changes to tax settings such as negative gearing and capital gains concessions.
The campaign states, “A house here costs $940,000 today. By the time I finish uni: $1.6 million. By the time I’m 40: $5.5 million. The deposit alone is $1.1 million. House prices grow at 6.8% a year. My wages will grow at 3%. I was never supposed to catch up.”
It adds, “This isn’t bad luck. It’s arithmetic. And someone built it this way.”
Housing policy remains a point of tension between supply measures and demand-side support, with the current scheme positioned by government agencies as a pathway into ownership while critics argue it risks adding pressure to already elevated prices.
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