Family home is high on the agenda for Eranda

Raising a family in your own home is one of life’s most precious luxuries. We recently caught up with Eranda, a Keystart customer with big plans.

Eranda is from Sri Lanka. After four years of living in Australia, he and his wife decided that the new financial year was the time to take the next step and move into a house they can call their own.

“We are planning for a kid in the next year, so we wanted to have a good neighbourhood to bring a child up and also to come home to a place we feel at peace,” Eranda explained.

With this goal in mind, Eranda and his wife began the process of home ownership. They heard about Keystart, reached out and connected with Joe, a Keystart team member. 

Like many first home buyers, the size of the deposit was a significant hurdle. However, with Joe’s help and the First Home Buyers grant, Eranda was able to make the leap and move forward towards his dream.

A shared loan arrangement

Shared equity is another option for buyers on lower to moderate incomes who may not be in a position to purchase a home outright. The Housing Authority assists by co-owning some of the property with you. In Eranda’s case, they assisted with 20% of ownership to allow him to be able to purchase his home.

Learning curve

“I was new to the property market, so in the initial stages, I had a lot of questions,” Eranda said. 

Staying in close contact with Joe helped Eranda get clear answers whenever he needed them. In the early stages of the process, Eranda attributes this efficiency and friendly service to him choosing Keystart. 

His once distant dream is now a vivid and exciting reality, far from the overwhelming financial stress that many expect home ownership to be.

A home fit for a family

For Eranda and his wife, their new home is a place for his family to grow. 

Eranda looked for an emotional connection to the house and the neighbourhood surrounding it. After getting his house blessed by a local monk, he has spent the last few months buying the necessities for a homely space.

"We looked at a lot of houses, but the moment we saw this house, we had a feeling that this was the one we wanted to live in."

"We have an amazing neighbour who came and spoke to us the first week we moved in to settle us in. It gave us a sense of belonging to the community," said Eranda.

Want to talk?

Keystart helps thousands of individuals and families to find their place to call home in Western Australia. If you would like to find out if home ownership is possible in your current situation, reach out for a chat.