First home grant NZ: it has closed, here’s what to use instead

Rules, income caps and premiums are from Kāinga Ora and Inland Revenue as at October 2026 and can change. The $755,000 figure is the REINZ national median sale price for September 2026.

I still get asked about the first home grant most weeks. Old guides rank well on Google, so plenty of first home buyers plan around money that isn’t there any more. Better to know now. If you applied before it closed, check the status of your application with Kāinga Ora directly.

Is there still a first home grant in New Zealand? No, it has closed

No. The Kāinga Ora First Home Grant closed to new applications on 22 May 2024, and nothing has replaced it with cash. Applications approved before it closed were honoured, but that’s the end of it. For the record, the grant was up to $5,000 per eligible buyer for an existing home and up to $10,000 for a new build.

The other big scheme, First Home Partner, is fully subscribed and closed to new applications. Kāinga Ora no longer does shared ownership either. If you want the detail on what’s left in that space, I’ve covered it on the shared home ownership page.

So the help that’s left is about borrowing more cheaply against a small deposit, and getting at your own savings.

First home loan grant alternatives: what you can use instead

A 5% deposit on the REINZ September median sale price of $755,000 is $37,750. That’s the kind of number a lot of buyers can actually reach.

What happened to the Kāinga Ora first home grant?

Buyers search for the Kāinga Ora first home grant, the NZ first home grant or the first home loan grant, and they all mean the same closed scheme. It stopped taking new applications in May 2024, and no cash grant has replaced it. If a website still tells you to apply, it’s out of date. What exists now is cheaper access to a small deposit, which is what the options below are about.

Your KiwiSaver is the nearest thing to a first home grant

If you’ve been in KiwiSaver for three years or more, you can usually withdraw your own and your employer’s contributions, the government contribution and the interest. You have to leave $1,000 behind. It generally can’t be used for an auction deposit, so tell me before you bid. I’ve written the full steps in KiwiSaver first-home withdrawal.

The Kāinga Ora First Home Loan

This is a 5% deposit loan from a participating lender, backed by Kāinga Ora. The income caps are $95,000 for a single buyer, $150,000 for a single buyer with dependants and $150,000 combined for two or more buyers. House price caps were removed in 2022, though some older websites still list them.

The catch is the insurance premium. Since 1 July 2025 it’s 1.2% of the loan, so $6,000 on a $500,000 loan. It can be paid upfront or over the life of the loan, and the lender may pass it on. Only selected lenders take part, and that list changes. The Kāinga Ora First Home Loan page has the rules in full.

5% at BNZ and YouOwn

A 5% deposit isn’t only a Kāinga Ora thing. BNZ lends at 5% under its own criteria, and so does YouOwn. YouOwn is different. It puts in up to 15% alongside your 5%, and the bank lends the other 80%. I’m an accredited YouOwn adviser through Mortgage Managers, so I can walk you through how it works.

Buying new can open more doors

Banks have a limit on how much lending they can do above 80% LVR. Kāinga Ora loans are exempt, and so are construction loans and new builds bought from the developer within six months of completion. That can make a low deposit easier to get approved on a new build. I go through the options in low deposit home loans.

What a first home buyer can do now without the grant

This example is invented to show the sums. Rules, caps and fees are as at the date of this article and need checking with Kāinga Ora and your lender.

Sam and Aroha are buying their first home for $755,000, the September REINZ national median. Between them they have $20,000 of savings and $25,000 in KiwiSaver, and both have been members for more than 3 years.

The old grant would have been a small top-up on this deposit. Without it, the deposit comes from savings and KiwiSaver, and the First Home Loan lets them buy at around 5% down rather than waiting for 20%. The premium is a real cost, so I compare it with other 5% deposit lenders before recommending one. Also check the First Home Loan income caps against their incomes, and whether the lender will approve at that price.

Illustrative only. Not personalised advice. Talk to your lender, and your lawyer for the purchase agreement.

Where to start

1. Check your KiwiSaver start date and balance.
2. Work out your deposit as a percentage of the price you’re targeting.
3. Check your income against the Kāinga Ora caps.
4. Get pre-approval before you go looking. See the first home buyers page.

General information only, not personalised advice. Talk to Kāinga Ora, your lender or your lawyer to confirm eligibility and the current rules before you rely on any of this.

Common questions

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This article is general information only and isn’t personalised financial advice. Figures are illustrative and based on the assumptions shown. Mortgage Sense is a trading name of Yatin Kainth, a Financial Adviser (FSP1007497) providing advice under the Mortgage Managers licence (North West Group Holdings Ltd, FSP682791). See the Disclosure Statement.