13-08-2025
Money guru's $612k offer for Aussie homebuyers
It's mixed news for homeowners and house hunters after the RBA's 2025 rate cut hat-trick.
Interest rates have fallen significantly for Aussies this year on the back of Tuesday's third interest rate cut for this year. But finance guru Mark Bouris believes that is the end of good news for mortgage holders in the foreseeable future.
However truggling Aussie home buyers are being given the chance to save hundreds of thousands of dollars and get into a home much sooner via a new lending option offering up to 105 per cent finance.
The finance offering backed by Bouris is aimed at helping Aussie home buyers, including those looking for their first property, a way around many of the onerous hurdles to real estate ownership.
Despite recent falls in interest rates, the chance at owning a new home is increasingly beyond the reach of the average Aussie due to continued unaffordability, relentless upward pressure on prices due to a lack of stock and high immigration levels and punishing taxes.
'With every year that passes, there's a new crop of borrowers potentially being locked out of the market. This new generation needs these kinds of lending products to help them climb
the property ladder', said Bouris, Executive Chairman of Yellow Brick Road.
'Governments keep introducing demand-side incentives that don't address the root problem.
'Deductible interest, CGT and transfer duty relief all just pour fuel on the fire of demand. We have moved to remove the deposit barrier, focus on new builds, and make the loan affordable.
'That's how we tackle both cost of living and property supply shortages.'
Yellow Brick Road has partnered with Empower Money to help buyers overcome many of the difficulties in buying a new home.
Non-bank lender Empower Money is offering approved clients up to 105 per cent finance, that will cover the purchase price of approved home and the associated risk fees, eliminating the need for a housing deposit.
'This means that if you're a first homebuyer in a location where transfer duty is covered by the First Home Buyers Grant, you can get a loan approved with no money down and only a minimal contribution of borrower funds,' said Peter Khoury, Chairman of Empower Money. 'Buyers only need to cover application, legal, and settlement adjustment fees. Even if you're not eligible for the First Home Buyers Grant, transfer duty is only a fraction of the deposit cost, which represents a much better borrowing position than having to pay both from the borrower's personal funds.'
Empower Money says that in order to 'ensure responsible lending' the product is restricted to vetted new dwellings, including apartments and house and land packages from a national stock list.
The new lending product offers a 6.95 per cent interest rate as opposed to most 90 per cent LVR loans that require a 10 per cent deposit.
Yellow Brick Road and Empower Money estimates the average Aussie homebuyer can save $612,000 when the time taken to raise money for a home deposit, rental costs and rising property values are taken into consideration. Given it takes around 10 years for potential buyers to save for a 20 per cent deposit.
After Tuesday's rate cash which took the cash rate down to 3.85 per cent – the third rate cut this year from the RBA, Bouris said homeowners would be wrong to expect any more cuts in 2025.
'The first thing I would expect is for that rate cut to be passed on across the country by all lenders,' he said.
However Bouris believes remaining uncertainty over inflation and unemployment will mean RBA boss Michelle Bullock won't drop rates again this year.
'There is a lot of talk in the media that there will be two more rate cuts this year but I don't think we are guaranteed any more reductions,' he said.
'The language in the RBA notes is pretty clear. Don't listen to what you hear in the press. To me the cash rate it settled at the moment. I just don't see another cut happening.
This will be the last rate reduction we will see for 2025.'
