The Greens say that the government needs to find a solution for first homebuyers who have been conned by Labor's 5% home deposit scheme - encouraged to maximise borrowing at the top of the market, and now pushed into unsustainable debt.
The timing of Labor's interventions - getting first homebuyers into the market via the 5% deposit scheme, before making tax changes and letting inflation run wild, have cumulatively left first homebuyers at significant risk of negative equity.
Currently, the primary beneficiary of the scheme is the banks - who benefit from selling more and larger mortgages with even higher risk.
The Greens say that with interest rates rising and mortgages soaring, first homebuyers risk being forced out of their homes, left with significant debt and no home to show for it.
As put by Leader of the Australian Greens, Senator David Shoebridge:
"Thanks to Labor, first homebuyers risk being forced out of their homes, left with significant debt and no home to show for it.
"Labor created this problem and now they've got to fix it.
"Anthony Albanese has lured first home buyers into a scheme that's left them trapped in debt and facing losing their home. The only winner here is the banks.
"House prices coming down will help more first homebuyers get into the market, once corporate profit fuelled interest rates come down - but Labor's inaction means the banks are winning while everyone else is paying the price.
"Like all of Labor's housing schemes, this wasn't about helping people - it was a con to make it look like they're doing something while pushing up prices for investors selling at the top of the market."
As stated by Greens spokesperson for finance, housing and homelessness and Senator for South Australia, Barbara Pocock:
"Labor's 5% deposit scheme was reckless. It has encouraged some of our lowest paid workers to take out very large loans at the top of the market. And now they are at risk of negative equity and that's on Labor!
"First homebuyers under this scheme have been conned into massive debts. As interest rates continue to rise, they're struggling to hold onto their home and risk owing the bank. Labor has screwed them.
"The government is letting corporate profit-driven inflation run wild, and it's renters and first homebuyers who are paying the price.
"House prices need to fall if first homebuyers stand any chance of getting into the housing market. First homebuyers are typically in it for the long-haul, not a short-term investment. It's the government's responsibility to make sure first homebuyers drawn into Labor's 5% deposit scheme aren't the ones paying the price.
"The Greens want Australia's big banks to be required to offer low-interest mortgages for first homebuyer owner occupiers so that more of their early repayments go to paying off the loan, not to bank profits.
"Our large banks are amongst the most profitable in the world and they have been making money from the financial stress of Australians for too long. It's time the banks shouldered a fairer share of the costs facing younger generations entering home ownership."
