By Chaice Paterson, CEO & Founder, Low Deposit Homes | Updated June 2026

Whether your family came to Australia from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan or anywhere else across the continent, the path into your first home runs through the same powerful set of government schemes — and a few questions that are specific to African families. The headline: you can buy a brand-new home with a 5% deposit and no Lenders Mortgage Insurance through the federal 5% Deposit Scheme; permanent residents qualify for almost everything from the day PR is granted; and the things that worry African buyers most — remittances home, money or property back in your country of origin, and using a community savings group (stokvel, susu, chama, ajo, mukando, sanduk) for your deposit — are all manageable, and none of them disqualify you. And wherever you’re looking, Low Deposit Homes builds across Queensland and Victoria and will match you to the corridor that suits you. This is the complete guide, with links to the detailed page for your community. Here’s everything that matters.

Which schemes can African first home buyers access?

Your visa status is the master key. The map is the same for every nationality:

If you’re on permanent residency (subclass 189, 190 or 186), you can access everything except Help to Buy from the day PR was granted — there’s no need to wait for citizenship to buy. If you’re on a temporary visa such as a 482, you’re excluded from these schemes and face foreign-buyer stamp duty and FIRB requirements, so the strategic move is transitioning to PR first while you bank Australian payslips and savings. On a 491 (regional provisional) visa, eligibility varies — confirm with a broker. Help to Buy is the one scheme reserved for Australian citizens — and it’s the only one that shrinks the loan itself (up to a 40% government equity share on a new build), which makes it a powerful lever for single buyers under the income caps ($100,000 single / $160,000 couple/family).

How much deposit do you actually need?

Far less than 20% — and because Low Deposit Homes builds right across Queensland and Victoria, the figures below are examples of the value on offer, not the only places you can buy. We match you to the corridor that suits your work, family and budget.

• More affordable Victorian corridors — for example, parts of Melbourne’s western, northern and south-eastern growth corridors (and Geelong) often start around $650,000–$750,000, where a new build under $750,000 unlocks the full Victorian stack (the $10,000 First Home Owner Grant + stamp duty exemption + 5% Scheme), with net cash in around $29,000. Similar value exists in other Victorian growth corridors.
• Brisbane and surrounds — for example, the western Ipswich corridor (areas such as Collingwood Park, Redbank Plains and Ripley) commonly runs $830,000–$1 million, where the 5% Scheme (under its $1M Brisbane cap) plus Queensland’s uncapped stamp duty exemption remove roughly $55,000–$60,000 of upfront cash — about $48,000 cash in on an $880,000 package. Other Brisbane growth areas, including Logan, offer comparable pathways.

One rule sits behind everything: the 5% Scheme reduces your deposit, not your loan. Your income still has to service the loan, and no responsible application stretches the loan past roughly 6.5 times a single income, or 6 times where you support dependants.

Can you use a community savings group for your deposit?

Yes — and this is one of the most common questions African families ask. Whether your community calls it a stokvel (South Africa), susu (Ghana and West Africa), chama (Kenya), ajo, esusu or adashe (Nigeria), mukando or “rounds” (Zimbabwe), sanduk (Sudan and South Sudan), equb (Ethiopia and Eritrea) or a tontine (Francophone Africa), a payout from your rotating savings group can form part of your home deposit. The keys are documentation and disclosure: keep a clear paper trail of the payout, add a gift statutory declaration if any portion is gifted, and allow for time-in-account where genuine-savings rules apply. Never hide the source — declared and documented, it’s completely routine. A community savings tradition is a strength, not a problem. See our full guide: Community Savings (Susu, Stokvel, Chama, Ajo) for Your Home Deposit.

Do remittances home affect your loan?

This worries a lot of African buyers, so let’s be clear: remittances reduce your borrowing capacity, but they do not disqualify you. Lenders treat regular money sent overseas as a committed outgoing, so it lowers the maximum you can borrow — but it’s a normal, manageable part of an application. The golden rule is to declare it, never hide it. If your remittances are large relative to your income, reducing them genuinely in the months before you apply can lift your capacity — but that’s your choice, and it must be sustainable. See our full guide: Do Remittances to Africa Affect Your Australian Home Loan?

What if you still own property, or have money, back home?

Two common situations, both manageable:

• Property back home. It depends on the scheme. The 5% Deposit Scheme only tests whether you’ve owned property in Australia — your property back home generally doesn’t count. The Victorian First Home Owner Grant is stricter and looks at worldwide owned-and-occupied property after 1 July 2000. Help to Buy turns on whether you currently own property. We check this scheme by scheme before you rely on anything.
• Money back home. Many African countries operate strict exchange controls, so moving funds out is regulated and needs specialist advice — but you usually don’t need it, because the 5% deposit target is low and reachable from Australian savings, a community savings payout, or a gift. See our full guides: Owning Property Back Home and Bringing Money From Africa for Your Deposit.

What about NDIS and healthcare workers?

A large share of our African clients work in disability support (NDIS), often across several concurrent casual employers, or in nursing and healthcare. Two things matter:

• NDIS / multiple casual jobs: many lenders only count your main job, but the right lender aggregates all your casual income streams — and our finance partners match you to that lender. See NDIS Worker Home Loans in QLD and VIC.
• Registered nurses: most lenders count your overtime and shift allowances at 100%, which lifts your assessable income well above base salary. See African Nurses & Healthcare Workers Home Loans.

Two more realities for many African households: parents living with you count as dependants (reducing capacity), and a parent’s pension is never used in an application.

Find your community’s detailed guide

Each of these pages runs your community’s specific numbers, savings term and visa angle:

• South African First Home Buyers — 76% are Australian citizens, so Help to Buy is often the lead; stokvel deposits; SA retirement-fund cautions.
• Zimbabwean First Home Buyers — one of Australia’s most highly educated communities (76.4% tertiary-qualified); the professional-couple / 5% Scheme angle; mukando deposits.
• Nigerian First Home Buyers — skilled-migration professional profile; ajo/esusu deposits.
• Kenyan First Home Buyers — chama deposits; skilled-visa pathways.
• Sudanese & South Sudanese First Home Buyers — a significant community in Victoria; sanduk deposits; visa-pathway guidance.

Don’t see your nation? Our regional guides (East, West, Southern, North, Central African and Horn of Africa) cover every community, and the schemes above apply to you whatever your country of origin.

How does Low Deposit Homes help?

We do three things, for every African family the same way. First, our finance partners (licensed brokers) review your borrowing capacity and you get a full bank approval before you’re placed on any package. Second, our finance partners match you to the right lender for your situation: professional serviceability, multi-employer NDIS income, a community savings payout in your deposit, remittance commitments. Third, we find you the right new-build package — our standard is a 4-bed, 2-bath, 2-car home with a multi-purpose room, the best layout for your family within budget, with no upselling.

We build across Queensland and Victoria — from the Ipswich and Logan growth corridors in Brisbane to Melbourne’s western, northern and south-eastern growth corridors (and Geelong) — and match you to the area that fits your life, not the other way around.

Worth knowing early: settlement is not handover. Settlement is when the land title transfers; handover is when you collect the keys to the finished home, often months later. “Conditional, awaiting registration” is normal in a new build.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to be an Australian citizen to buy with these schemes?
No. Permanent residents access everything except Help to Buy from the day PR is granted. Only Help to Buy is citizens-only.

Can I use my community savings group (stokvel, susu, chama, ajo) for the deposit?
Yes — documented and disclosed. Keep a paper trail, add a gift statutory declaration if any portion is gifted, and mind time-in-account rules.

Will sending money home stop me buying?
No. Remittances reduce your borrowing capacity but don’t disqualify you.

I still own property back home — am I locked out?
Usually not for the 5% Deposit Scheme, which only tests Australian ownership. The Victorian grant and Help to Buy have different rules — we check each one.

Do I have to buy in a particular suburb?
No. The corridors mentioned are examples of where we build and where the value is strong — we build across Queensland and Victoria and match you to the area that suits your work, family and budget.

How much deposit do I really need?
On a sub-$750,000 Victorian package, often around $26,000–$29,000 net. On an $830,000–$1 million Queensland package, roughly $45,000–$55,000.

Your next step

Book a free 15-minute consultation and we’ll run your actual numbers — which schemes you qualify for, and what a real package would cost your family.

Book your free call → Book your free call | 1800 920 172

Related reading: South African · Zimbabwean · Nigerian · Kenyan · Sudanese & South Sudanese First Home Buyer Guides · Community Savings Deposit Guide · NDIS Worker Home Loans · How Low Deposit Homes Works.

Related guides: Queensland first home buyer guide · Victoria first home buyer guide · Grant Eligibility Calculator · Borrowing Power Calculator

First home buyer guides by nationality

• Nigerian first home buyer guide
• South African first home buyer guide
• Zimbabwean first home buyer guide
• Kenyan first home buyer guide
• Sudanese first home buyer guide
• South Sudanese first home buyer guide

Guides by African region

• East African first home buyers
• West African first home buyers
• North African first home buyers
• Central African first home buyers
• Southern African first home buyers
• Horn of Africa / Somali first home buyers

Key topics for African buyers

• The Australian home loan process for African migrants
• Using community savings (susu, stokvel, equb) for a deposit
• Sending remittances and still buying
• Home loans for African nurses and healthcare workers
• NDIS worker home loans — Queensland
• NDIS worker home loans — Victoria

Low Deposit Homes operates under Winning Homes Australia Pty Ltd (ACN 633 321 758). All calculations indicative. Not financial advice.