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FHB loan values hit new record after 5% Deposit Scheme extension
New data showed that first home buyer (FHB) loans hit their second-highest value on record after the 5 per cent Deposit Scheme was extended, soaring in the last quarter of 2025.
According to the latest ABS Lending indicators, the value of FHB loans written in the last three months of 2025 reached $19.3 billion, the second-highest amount after March 2021.
The results also showed that the number of loans for FHB rose sharply on the back of the deposit scheme, up 6.8 per cent compared to the previous quarter.
NSW saw the largest quarterly increase in FHB loans, up 11 per cent, followed by Western Australia, up 10 per cent, and the ACT, up 7 per cent.
According to Canstar.com.au’s data insights director, Sally Tindall, the expansion of the deposit scheme fueled the first-home buyer market, allowing thousands to enter the property market within three months.
“The value of new loan commitments from first home buyers surged by more than 20 per cent compared to the same time a year ago, with a mammoth $19 billion in loans secured in the December quarter,” she said.
Investor loans hit new record
While FHB loan activity surged, investor loans also reached a record high, increasing 7.9 per cent to $43 billion in Q4 2025.
Meanwhile, across the market, new mortgages reached a record high, totalling $108 billion in the last three months of 2025.
Tindall said that, rather than being deterred by the fresh wave of property owners, investors had been encouraged by it, seeking a chance for capital growth.
“Buyers typically equal greater opportunity for capital growth, with the value of new investor loans rising by almost 8 per cent in the quarter,” she said.
Owner-occupier loan sizes grow
According to the ABS data, the average loan size for owner-occupiers also reached a record high of $736,000, increasing by $42,000 in the quarter.
NSW recorded the largest average new loan size for owner-occupiers at $873,000, setting a new state record after a $44,000 increase in three months.
Similarly, Western Australia hit a record high of $688,000, the biggest growth out of the states and territories in percentage and dollar terms, increasing $55,000, or 9 per cent, in one quarter.
Tindall said it was no surprise that the size of debt people were agreeing to take on had hit a new record high, given the three Reserve Bank of Australia cash rate cuts last year.
“If loan sizes continue to escalate at this pace, generations to come whose families aren’t yet on the property ladder could well see themselves locked out permanently,” she said.