Do I need genuine savings for the 5% deposit scheme?

Generally, yes. Under the scheme you're borrowing 95%, and most lenders want genuine savings once you're borrowing above 90%. Some apply it to every scheme loan regardless.

How long do genuine savings need to be held?

Generally around three months before you submit your loan application. Savings built up over that period, or held for that period, normally satisfy the test.

Can rent count as genuine savings under the 5% scheme?

Often, yes. Some lenders accept a rental ledger showing a clean history of rent payments as proof of genuine savings, since that's money you could have saved. How long the history needs to be varies by lender.

Does a gift from my parents count as genuine savings?

It depends on the lender. Some accept a family gift as your genuine contribution, others only count it on top of savings you've built yourself.

Does the first home owner grant count as genuine savings?

Almost never. Government grants are generally excluded from genuine savings, though they can normally still be used toward the purchase.

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Straight Answers · First home

I'm using the 5% scheme. Do I still need genuine savings?

Bayley Clarke · Mortgage broker on the road · Last checked 16 October 2026 · 3 min read

The short answer

Yes. Generally, if you're borrowing more than 90% of the property's value, the banks want to see genuine savings. Under the 5% scheme you're borrowing 95%, because you've only got a 5% deposit, so the genuine savings test applies to you.

Genuine savings generally covers the three months before you submit your loan application. If you can't show it the typical way, some lenders accept other ways to prove it, and the most common one is a rental ledger showing what you've been paying in rent.

The 60 second version, filmed from the driver's seat. The rest of this page is the detail underneath it.

Why the scheme doesn't switch the test off

The 5% scheme takes care of one thing: the government guarantees part of your loan, so you can buy with a 5% deposit without paying lenders mortgage insurance. It doesn't change how the bank decides whether you can afford the loan.

That's two separate hurdles. The scheme sets the deposit floor. The lender's genuine savings test checks you've been able to put money aside on your own. Clearing the first doesn't automatically clear the second, and some lenders apply genuine savings to scheme loans no matter how much you're borrowing.

What genuine savings normally looks like

The typical pathway is you accumulating those funds over the last three months or longer. Your statements show the balance growing, or sitting there, and that's the box ticked. If you've been saving for a while, this is the easy version.

Lenders tend to be strict about what counts toward it. Government grants like a first home owner grant are almost universally excluded from genuine savings, even though they can normally still be used toward the purchase. Gifts are split: some lenders count a gift from family, others say it can only sit on top of savings you've built yourself.

When you can't prove it the usual way

There are some lenders that will support alternative ways to verify genuine savings. Say you've had a gift, you've sold your car, or something else means the money hasn't been sitting there for three months. That's not automatically the end of it.

The most common workaround is a rental ledger. It proves you've been paying X amount per week in rent, which is money you could have otherwise saved, and therefore you tick the box for the genuine savings requirement. Lenders differ on how long that rent history needs to be and whether it has to come through a real estate agent, so it's matched to the right lender.

The honest bit: the scheme is the easy part

Getting a place under the 5% scheme is generally the straightforward bit. Where first home buyers get caught is the lender sitting behind it, because the genuine savings rules, the gift rules and the rent history rules all vary.

If your deposit has a gift in it, a car sale in it, or it's only just landed in your account, say so on the first call. It changes which lenders we look at, and it's far easier to plan around early.

Buying under the 5% scheme and not sure your savings will pass?

A 30 minute call. We look at where your deposit came from, whether it passes the genuine savings test as it is, and which lenders fit if it doesn't.

Book a 30 minute call Call 0437 189 939

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Next question

Can I buy a property with a $0 deposit?

Yes, with a guarantor. The bank treats your loan as 80% even when it's covering the whole purchase, your savings stay yours, and the guarantor.