To apply for a Bond Assistance Loan you must meet certain eligibility criteria, see below for details.
1. Tenancy Agreement
a. Bond Assistance Loans are only available if a residential tenancies agreement, as required by the Residential Tenancies Act 1987, is or will be in place.
b. Applicants making application for a Bond Assistance Loan should be signatories to the Tenancy Agreement.
2. Age
Assistance is provided to persons 16 years of age and above.
3. Income
a. Applicants must have an income source received in Western Australia.
b. Applicants’ income must be within current Housing Authority income limits at the time of application. (See Eligibility relating to Income Limits).
c. Applicants in receipt of a wage or salary must have their employer complete the Employer Income Verification Statement or supply their last three months of consecutive wage or salary advice slips.
d. A self-employed applicant must have a business registered in Western Australia and furnish his/her taxation return for the previous financial year and provide company books to verify an average weekly earning for at least a three-month period. These applicants will be assessed on their taxable income or the equivalent award, whichever is the greater.
e. All incomes must be verified in writing.
4. Cash Assets
Documentary proof of cash assets includes a Centrelink Income Statement no more than 4 weeks old, an up-to-date statement from a bank or other financial institution and/or evidence from a registered accountant.
5. Amount of loan
Where there are independent household members not applying for assistance, then assistance to applicants is to be pro-rata, i.e. family of five with an independent member qualify for 80% of the assistance.
6. Citizenship
a. Applicants must be Australian Citizens or have permanent residency status.
b. New Zealand citizens holing a temporary or permanent visa are eligible for a Bond Assistance Loan.
c. Sponsored migrants or migrants with assurances of support are not eligible even if in receipt of an income or Centrelink Benefit.
7. Assets.
a. Liquid Assets – cash in bank cannot exceed the following limits:
- Single applicants (without dependents) – $2,500
- Singles and couples (with dependents) – $5,000
b. Applicants should not own or be part owner of property or land.
c. Discretion may be exercised in all cases where difficulties exist concerning the prompt realisation of an asset, or where there will be limited personal equity in the asset or situations of family violence.
d. An applicant, who is moving due to employment and applying to reside in an area remote from his/her present accommodation, may retain ownership of residential property where that employment is for 12 months or less. However, the policy of not owning residential property will apply generally state wide.
e. If an applicant must reside elsewhere due to access requirements caused by a sudden disability, then property ownership is not a bar. However, the property must be sold within a reasonable time.
f. Consideration can be given in special circumstances to applicants who own a single block of residential land of little value and no prospect of building on it in order to house themselves.
8. Debt to the Housing Authority
a. Bond Assistance approval is subject to repayment of any outstanding debts to the Housing Authority. Where applicable a Bond Assistance applicant may have an outstanding bond debt consolidated with a new bond loan.
b. Where a Bond Assistance Loan applicant has an outstanding Housing Authority rental debt, the applicant will be entitled to participate in the Debt Discount Scheme for the rental debt only.
For more information view the Debt Discount Scheme page.
9. Levels of assistance
a. The levels of assistance are set at four times the median weekly rent for the appropriate form of accommodation for the household type. The maximum amount of assistance, or the equivalent of four weeks rent of the property accommodation, is made payable to the Landlord/Agent.
b. If less than the maximum amount of assistance or the equivalent of four weeks rent is required, this amount will be paid to the Landlord/Agent.
c. Bond Assistance Loan limits are increased for remote and Northwest areas by 40 per cent.
d. Pro-rata assistance may be provided, where not all persons in the household are eligible for assistance.
e. Bond Assistance Loan will only be provided where the rent payable for the private rental is 60 per cent or less of the gross income of the household.
f. Where pro-rata allocation is to occur, each person deemed to be contributing to the rent, (this includes dependents on a person’s income, i.e. supporting parent) is to be apportioned an equal share of the total Bond Assistance that would be payable if all persons were eligible.
For more information view the Maximum Loan Limits page.
10. Bankruptcy
a. Where a Bond Assistant Loan customer makes application for bankruptcy before vacating the property for which the loan was advanced, action to recover the loan is to cease.
11. Conditions of assistance
a. Applicants receiving a Bond Assistance Loan enter into an arrangement to repay at a minimum of $25 per fortnight at time of approval.
12. Further assistance
a. Any Bond Assistance Loan recipient defaulting upon repayments while in occupation or after vacation may be refused all further assistance until arrears are cleared.
b. Applicants making application for further Bond Assistance with no current debt but a history of default with a previous Bond Assistance loan may be refused further assistance This will not apply to other types of assistance, such as rental, home ownership, etc.
c. Any Bond Assistance Loan recipient in repayment default that has a current application for rental assistance may have their application withdrawn and must reapply for rental assistance.