Buying Your First Home With a Friend or Sibling: What to Know Before You Sign

Buying a home on your own can feel out of reach. So more people are asking a fair question: could we do it together? A friend, a brother or sister, or a cousin. Pooling your savings and your income can open doors. It can also go wrong if you skip the hard conversations. Here is what to think about before you start.

Can you use the 5% Deposit Scheme with a friend or sibling?

Yes. The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (formerly the First Home Guarantee) lets you apply on your own, or jointly with one other person. That person can be a partner, a friend or a family member. The scheme lets you buy with a deposit as small as 5% without paying lenders mortgage insurance.

A few things to know:

• Two people at most. You can apply with one other person, not a group of three or four.
• Both of you must meet the rules. You each need to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident aged 18 or over, and a first home buyer, which means you have not owned property or land in Australia in the last 10 years. If one of you has owned a home in that time, the scheme may not work for the pair of you.
• You both have to live there. The home must be somewhere you plan to live as owner-occupiers, not an investment. You need to move in within six months of settlement.
• Price caps apply. They differ by location and went up from 1 October 2025. Check the official postcode tool, then confirm with your lender.
• The scheme says there are no income caps.

The scheme is not the only option. You can buy with a bigger deposit and no scheme at all. Which way suits you depends on your savings and plans.

How lenders look at two borrowers

When two people apply together, the lender looks at both of you. Your incomes, your spending, and your debts all count. That includes credit cards, car loans, buy-now-pay-later and student loan debts. Two incomes can lift what you are able to borrow, but one person’s debts can pull the figure down for both of you.

Because of that, it helps to look at your numbers side by side early, before you fall in love with a house.

You are both on the hook for all of it

This is the part people tend to miss. When you share a loan, you are both responsible for the full repayments, not just your half. This is called joint and several liability. If one of you stops paying, the lender can ask the other for the whole amount.

It does not mean you should not do it. It means you should go in with your eyes open, and with someone you trust.

Questions to ask each other first

These are not fun to talk about. They are much easier before you have signed anything than after.

1. Who puts in what? Deposit, stamp duty, legal costs, and ongoing costs like rates, insurance and repairs.
2. Who pays the loan, and how? Equal split, or based on income? What if one person’s income changes?
3. What if one of you wants to sell? Can the other buy them out? Over what time? How would you work out the price?
4. What if a partner moves in? Or someone gets married, has a baby, or moves interstate?
5. What if one of you cannot pay for a while? Who covers it, and does it get paid back?
6. How long do you plan to hold the home? Do you both want the same thing?

Put it in writing, with a solicitor

How you hold the property matters, and so does having a written agreement between you. These are legal questions, and I cannot answer them for you. A solicitor can explain the ways you can own a home together and draw up an agreement that fits what you both want. It is a sensible cost to pay before you buy.

Duty and grants can also work differently when two people buy together. Check how the first home owner rate and any grants apply to you both with RevenueWA or your settlement agent.

Your next steps

1. Talk it through together. Use the questions above and write down your answers.
2. Check you both qualify. Especially the 10-year rule if either of you has owned property before.
3. Book a solicitor to explain how to own the home together and to draft an agreement.
4. Get your numbers side by side. Your incomes, savings and debts, so you know what you can borrow.
5. Talk to a broker before you start looking. I can show you both where you stand and what your options are.

Sources and when we checked

Checked on 21 October 2026. Sources: Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, First Home Buyers website (eligibility and frequently asked questions); Loan Market, “How to buy your first home with a sibling or friend”. Rules, price caps and thresholds can change, so confirm with the official sources and your lender before you buy. This article is general information only and is not personal advice. It is not legal advice. Speak to a solicitor about how to own and share a property.