Tasmania has become the last state to sign up to the federal government’s Help to Buy shared equity scheme, after months of what a federal minister described as “dithering” by the state government.
Housing Minister Kerry Vincent confirmed the decision on Sunday, alongside a milestone for the state’s own MyHome program, which has now helped more than 1,000 Tasmanians into home ownership.
“We want to open as many doors as we can to first home ownership,” he said.
Vincent said he had “extremely positive and constructive talks” with the federal housing minister in Canberra last week, with the finer details to be worked through in the coming months.
Help to Buy allows eligible first home buyers to purchase a home with as little as a 2% deposit, with the Commonwealth contributing up to 40% of the cost of a new home or 30% for an existing one.
The scheme has been running nationally since December 2025, with 2,356 places conditionally or fully approved in its first two months.
Federal Franklin MP Julie Collins said the delay was unnecessary.
“It should have never come to this and sadly the Tasmanian Liberal government’s dithering and delay will mean our state is the last to offer this scheme,” she said.
Tasmanian Labor shadow housing minister Meg Brown echoed the criticism, noting the scheme comes at no cost to the state.
“Tasmanians were being locked out of support available everywhere else in the country for no good reason,” she said.
“The important thing now is that Tasmanians will finally have access to another pathway into home ownership.”
Vincent also used the announcement to highlight the state’s MyHome program, which operates on a similar shared equity model.
He said 1,036 households had been helped so far, with more than a third purchasing new builds.
Single mother Catherine Johnston, who bought the Sorell home she had been renting through MyHome, said the scheme had changed her life.
“I’ve moved three times in the last five years and every time you move it’s emotionally and financially draining,” she said.
“To have something to call home and have somewhere for my children, to have stability … it’s such a relief.”
