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For many young people, buying their first home in their 20s may seem out of reach, but Ryan and Keilan were determined to make it happen.
Ryan McDonald, a Waka Waka man, and Keilan Carson, an Arunta man, are IBA’s 20,000th home loan customers since the inception of the Indigenous Home Ownership Program in 1975. The lessons they learned along the way are something all future homeowners can learn from.
Having been together for 5 years, and recently getting engaged, Keilan says the decision to buy their first home together “just felt right.”
Ryan and Keilan’s parents recommended they look at applying through IBA.
“When we first applied, we were on the waiting list for a long time,” Keilan said. The couple used this time to pay off credit card debts, continue saving for a deposit and seek advice from family on what other expenses they would need to budget for such as rates and utilities.
“Our family have been really supportive in helping us to get ready for home ownership, because we’re investing in our future and not just buying something silly,” they said.
The couple also stopped using short-term credit service providers, gaining an understanding through the IBA home loan process of how it was affecting their credit scores.
Ryan and Keilan’s IBA home lending officer, Jayde Clothier, a Kokatha and Wirangu woman from South Australia, said that it was common for people to not be aware of how these services can impact their credit rating and lending capability.
IBA has recently launched free online workshops to support customers wanting to understand credit.
When Ryan and Keilan got the news that they had been pre-approved for an IBA home loan, they started looking straight away. Thinking ahead, they contacted the real estate agency of their rental property.
“When we got pre-approved we told our real estate who we were renting from, ‘oh we might have a house!’ so we started paying week to week so that we weren’t locked into another lease,” Keilan said.
The young couple’s journey to home ownership was not without its challenges.
“When COVID-19 hit, our loan application got put on pause. It was really upsetting because we didn’t know if we were going to get the loan,” Keilan said.
“We also had a bad experience with the real estate. There were a lot of unknowns that we had to navigate. Jayde from IBA was able to guide us through the process and help us understand what we needed to do,” Ryan added.
“It feels good to say that we own our own home. I’ve worked at Hungry Jacks for a long time. People thought I couldn’t do it on a fast food salary because of the stigma attached to the work that I do. I feel proud that I’ve been able to accomplish something.”
When asked what advice they would give other young people considering buying a home, they said to “just do it.”
“Most of our friends haven’t looked into buying a house yet, and some are still living with their parents. We hope that we can inspire them, and our younger family members. If we can do it, they can too,” Ryan said.
Keilan added, “It’s way better than renting and paying off someone else’s mortgage. Plus we can do whatever we want, like building our deck for example, without asking anyone. It feels good!”
Committed to setting a strong foundation for their future, the young couple are doubling down on their mortgage, paying more than the minimum required each week to get ahead in their repayments. They know that if an unexpected event happens, such as losing income due to COVID-19, they will be able to put their payments on hold without going into arrears.
“My cousin asked me about home ownership now that we’ve done it. My nephew is already looking into buying a house and he is only 19. I told him to go through IBA. His mum, who is my older sister, bought her house through IBA too,” added Keilan.
Jayde says a key purpose of the IBA Home Ownership Program is to create intergenerational change.
“Seeing what your parents have done, what your sister has done and now you’re doing it yourselves, this is what IBA truly sets out to achieve, to bridge that gap, help to close it and create these best practices that will filter down into generations.”
Ryan and Keilan are excited to spend Christmas in their new home.
“We’re inviting our families over for Christmas and to celebrate with us. Not everyone has seen it yet. Hopefully we’ll have the deck done by then!”
