DHOAS and home loans for Defence members
Are you a serving or former ADF member? The Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme (DHOAS) may be part of your plans. So it is worth being clear from the start about what a broker can and cannot do.
What we cannot arrange
Zafar cannot arrange a DHOAS-subsidised loan. Defence has appointed a panel of three Home Loan Providers, and those providers have the exclusive right to provide DHOAS home loans. If you want a DHOAS loan, you apply through one of them. The current list is on the DHOAS website.
Where Zafar can help
- Home loans for Defence members who are not using DHOAS, or not yet eligible for it
- Looking at a loan held alongside a DHOAS loan, or held by a partner
- Comparing your current non-DHOAS loan with what is available from his lender panel
- Working with you by phone or video call, wherever you are posted in Australia
Thinking of moving a DHOAS loan?
The subsidy is only paid on a DHOAS loan from an appointed provider. Before you refinance a subsidised loan to another lender, read the scheme's subsidy ceasing events on dhoas.gov.au. Then confirm with DHOAS what would happen to your subsidy. A lower rate elsewhere has to be weighed against any subsidy you would give up.
Eligibility and subsidy amounts
Eligibility, subsidy tiers and loan limits are set by Defence and can change, so we do not repeat them here. The DHOAS eligibility page is the authoritative source.
Worth weighing up
- A DHOAS subsidy can be valuable. Do not refinance away from it without understanding what you would lose.
- Postings can change your plans quickly. Think about how easily a loan could be changed or a property rented out.
- Zafar compares loans from his lender panel, which does not include DHOAS loans.
Common questions
Can a mortgage broker arrange a DHOAS loan?
Not through us. Defence has appointed a panel of three Home Loan Providers, and those providers have the exclusive right to provide DHOAS home loans. The current providers are listed on the DHOAS website.
Which banks offer DHOAS home loans?
Three: Australian Military Bank, Defence Bank and National Australia Bank (NAB). Defence appointed them as the DHOAS Home Loan Providers, and they have the exclusive right to provide DHOAS home loans. Zafar cannot arrange a DHOAS-subsidised loan.
Why is my DHOAS subsidy going down or stopping?
DHOAS says monthly payments can change with the median interest rate it uses to work out the subsidy. Your tier can drop to tier 1 if you leave the ADF before 20 years of effective service. Payments stop on a subsidy ceasing event, such as repaying or increasing the loan, or using up your service credit. Confirm your position with DHOAS.
What happens to my DHOAS subsidy if I refinance?
The subsidy is only paid on a DHOAS loan from an appointed provider. Before refinancing a subsidised loan to another lender, check the subsidy ceasing events on dhoas.gov.au and confirm your position with DHOAS.
Talk to Zafar
Call Zafar, request a call back or send a message. Zafar works with clients across Australia by phone and video, and meets clients in person in Melbourne.