A step in the right direction

We keep on saying it, but housing is something we really need, so I'm not sure why we are debating the merits of a bill that has been designed to increase the number of houses.

The Help to Buy Bill 2023 not only increases the number of houses but helps people to buy a house.

Sure, people will share equity with the government, but they will be on the housing ladder.

It will give people who need it a hand up to get into the market.

As someone who has previously spent time wondering whether I would ever be able to afford a mortgage, I think a bill that helps people buy a house, a home, is a good thing.

I'm sure most of those who jump in to apply for the first 10, 000 spots will be first home buyers, but I also know this bill will support people on low to middle incomes who need to buy a new place following a relationship breakdown or who are downsizing due to a change in circumstances.

This scheme is due to run for four years, meaning 40, 000 individuals, families and couples will be helped into a home.

About 850 of those spots have been earmarked for Tasmanians.

Eight hundred and fifty home purchases over the next four years—that's a whole lot of happy people who can now buy a home, people who thought they may not have been able to or would be saving for a deposit for years to come.

And those 850 homes are on top of the home purchases already being supported through the housing scheme that is running in Tasmania.

This is a good thing, in my book.

I know what it's like to be scraping together every cent to try and buy your first home.

Back in the day when my youngest was just a baby, I went home when he was three months old so that we could afford a mortgage—so that we could afford to get the money in the bank to purchase a house.

I like that the government will contribute up to 40 per cent of the deposit and loan amount for new builds, and 30 per cent for people buying existing homes.

The extra 10 per cent means more new houses will be built in Tasmania and all over the country, and that is what we really need.

That is exactly what I was thinking when I fought to have a minimum guarantee of 1, 200 homes built in Tasmania as part of the Housing Australia Future Fund negotiations.

Whether they come as a result of this bill or another bill we will debate in the future, new houses are something we should be celebrating.

We shouldn't be going around in circles debating, leading to the bill getting further and further away from becoming law.

I know the Greens have called for more support to help people buy a house, yet they are saying no to this bill—a bill that will support more people to buy a home.

Go figure!

They have a choice to help either 10, 000 people or zero people to buy a home, and they're choosing zero, again.

I'm getting deja vu from the Housing Australia Future Fund all over again.

You can't say you're on the side of helping people with the housing crisis when you vote against bills that do just that.

Saying the bill doesn't go far enough won't be a good enough explanation for Tasmanians who are waiting for this scheme to kick in.

The scheme draws on policy from a successful housing model in Western Australia, so we already know it has been tested.

It takes a long time to save a deposit, find the right place and make sure you have enough for stamp duty and all the legal details.

Often it's just for this part of a house purchase that people need help, and then, once they're on the ladder, there's no stopping them.

If that happens, and after a few years they decide they want to negotiate their equity terms, they can.

They might be able to buy the government out altogether or they might want to keep things plodding along with shared equity with the government.

Either way, I am putting up my hand to say this bill is part of the solution we need to start making a dent in the housing crisis.

This won't be a silver bullet to fix everything.

We know that the absolute best thing we can do is to build more houses, to build more supply to keep up with demand.

This will help 10, 000 Australians; this will help 850 Tasmanians to achieve their dreams of owning their own house.

And in the words of Darryl Kerrigan, 'It's not just a house, it's a home.' Tasmanians, get your housing dreams in order.

It's first in, first served, so make sure you don't miss the boat.