Help for first-time home buyers

Written by Silusapho Nyanda

Government is helping make first-time home owners' dreams a reality through its Finance Linked Individual Subsidy Programme (FLISP). The FLISP helps those who qualify to buy a pre-existing home, a serviced residential site, or to build a house on a residential site they already own.

The subsidy programme supplements the bond repayments made by people who earn between R3 501 and R22 000 per month. The subsidy amount ranges from between R27 960 and R121 626. You can also apply for this subsidy if you purchased your first home in the past 12 months, according to the Department of Human Settlements (DHS).

The DHS says the subsidy is intended to assist people who earn too much to qualify for a fully subsidised house, but too little to comfortably afford bond repayments to a bank. 

The subsidy can be used to buy a house in a development housing project or on the open market, and will be used to reduce the home loan amount and make the bond repayments affordable.

To qualify, you must be a first-time home buyer, a South African citizen or a permanent resident with a permit. You must be over 18, must have dependants, and must not have previously benefitted from a government housing subsidy scheme.

The National Housing Finance Corporation (NHFC) administers FLISP on behalf of the DHS.

When submitting an application, applicants will need the following documents, among others:

• Proof of home loan or approval in principle;
• Agreement of sale (where applicable);
• Building contract and approved building plan (where applicable);
• South African identity document;
• Identification documents of all occupants;
• A marriage or civil union certificate/final order of divorce/spouse death certificate;
• Recent payslip.

A list of all required documents can be found on the application form.

When buying in a housing development, an applicant must identify a property from the FLISP development projects. 

Before the subsidy is ap8proved, the following must be done:

• The buyer needs to sign an offer to buy with the developer;
• The developer will assist the applicant to apply for a home loan with an accredited lender;
• The applicant must complete the FLISP forms with a trained FLISP agent from the property developer.

Applicants can find the FLISP application form on the NHFC website (www.nhfc.co.za), or at their nearest NHFC or DHS office. Call the NHFC call centre at 0860 011 011 to find out about FLISP housing developments projects in all provinces, or send an email to flisp@nhfc.co.za.