Higher limits aim to improve access to home ownership amid rising market values
The Western Australian government has increased the price caps on several of its Keystart home loan products, responding to continued growth in the Perth property market.
The move is intended to help more residents enter the housing market, as property values in the state continue to climb.
The maximum property price for three of the Keystart loans – the Low Deposit Home Loan, Shared Ownership Home Loan, and Aboriginal Home Loan—has been raised from $730,000 to $800,000. The cap for the Access Home Loan, which supports people with a permanent disability, has increased from $615,000 to $660,000.
Perth’s median house price reached $847,000 in July, following a 0.4% monthly rise, according to the PropTrack Home Price Index. Over the past year, the city’s median property price has grown by 7.9%, outpacing Sydney’s rate and making Perth the third most expensive capital city in Australia, behind Sydney and Brisbane.
Keystart, established by the state government in 1989, was designed to lower entry barriers to home ownership. The program offers six different loan types, enabling buyers to enter the market with as little as a 2% deposit and without the need for Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance.
WA state treasurer Rita Saffioti said the changes were a response to significant price increases and aimed to create more consistency across Western Australia. The state as a whole has recorded a 10.2% rise in home prices since mid-2024, the highest growth rate among all Australian states and territories.
“Reforms to Keystart mean we can now regularly update property price limits and give Western Australians more opportunity to buy their own home,” said WA treasurer Rita Saffioti (pictured right).
“Under our government, Keystart will play an even stronger role in making the dream of an affordable reality for more people, through our modular home loans, graduate and apprentice loans, and a $210 million shared equity expansion.”
The latest adjustments follow changes to Keystart’s product settings mechanism at the end of last year, which now allows property price limits to be reviewed regularly in line with median values.
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