Excerpt from an article written by Paige Taylor titled, 'More Indigenous move into home ownership group', and published in The Australian on 11 September 2019.
More Indigenous Australians than ever are homeowners, fewer live in overcrowded accommodation and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who rent are slowly shifting away from social housing in favour of private properties.
Figures to be published on Wednesday by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show almost two in five Indigenous Australians were homeowners at the last census — of those, 12 per cent owned their home outright and 26 per cent had a mortgage.
The rate of home ownership among Indigenous Australians has gradually increased since 2006, while the home ownership rate among non-Indigenous Australians has decreased slightly over the same period.
In 2006, 34 per cent of Indigenous Australians owned their home or were paying it off.
By 2011 that figure had climbed to 36 per cent and at the 2016 census, 38 per cent of Indigenous Australians either owned their homes outright or were paying off a mortgage.
In contrast, the percentage of non-Indigenous Australians who either owned their home or were paying it off declined from 68 per cent in 2006 to 66 per cent in 2016.
Dagoman-Wardaman man and chairman of Indigenous Business Australia Eddie Fry oversees a home loan program that is helping increasing numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people into home ownership.
IBA approved more than $1bn in home loans to Indigenous Australians over the past five years.
In 2014-15, IBA approved 517 home loans to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In 2017-18, the number of home loans approved by IBA was a record 917.
“Home ownership has an opportunity to formulate the next wave of transformative success for indigenous people,” Mr Fry said.
“Home ownership is a key pillar on the journey to economic independence for indigenous Australians, providing not only stable housing but also an anchor from which to build an asset base for current and future generations and equity for other investment and business opportunities.”
Home ownership is a key pillar of economic independence. It generates not just an asset that can be handed down to future generations, but also better health, education and self-esteem for Indigenous Australians. Through IBA's solutions, our customers build a credit history over time and create equity in a home.
At a time when much of the financial services industry is coming to terms with the changes they need to make to deliver on customer and community expectations, IBA’s success stories on Indigenous home ownership shine a positive light on financial self-management and economic self-sufficiency for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
Check out the full article on LinkedIn.
The inaugural Futures Forum kicks off this week to drive the future direction for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia.
Amidst a smoking ceremony at the Murrook Cultural Centre at the Worimi Aboriginal Land Council outside of Newcastle NSW, a select group of over 50 young Indigenous people from across the country was welcomed on Worimi Country.
The initiative was made possible by Indigenous Business Australia (IBA), in collaboration with key organisations including Relative Creative, Indigenous Marathon Foundation, Melbourne Business School and Murra Indigenous Business Masterclass, NITV, Blaklash Projects, Gulanga and Lenovo.
Futures Forum brings together Indigenous people aged between 18 to 30 that have experience in owning and operating a business and/or contributing to the development of the Indigenous economy.
According to recent data, the average age of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia is 23, in comparison to non-Indigenous population where the average is 35. Futures Forum presents an opportunity to engage and connect with a large collective group of young Indigenous people from across the country and invest in effective succession planning for the future.
Jyi Lawton is a Bidjara man and Senior Manager, Industry Engagement, IBA. A young entrepreneur himself, he now works at IBA to foster an agenda that inspires the Indigenous community, especially our young people through Futures Forum.
‘The Futures Forum is future thinking, design led and a conversation that needs to happen. It’s about starting the conversation on what the future of business looks like.
‘With the landscape of automatisation shaping the future of business, we have to be adaptive and on the cutting edge of this future. It’s no different than what we’ve done as a mob over all our history.
‘We’ll be looking at what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture looks like in the future and how that connects with business, particularly the intersect between cultural knowledge, the business sector and shaping the future.
‘We’re creating a culturally safe place for young Indigenous people to come together and talk. There is something special that happens when you bring mob together – there’s a passion in that magic. The hope is that we come out of this with a way forward where Indigenous people have more of a seat at the table.’
Futures Forum will be facilitated by content experts and bring together national and international experts specialising in Indigenous culture, business, economics and innovation. Speakers include Bruce Pascoe (Bunurong man and author of Dark Emu), Tristan Schultz (Kamilaroi man and founder of Relative Creative), Terri Janke (Wuthathi/Meriam woman and Solicitor Director at Terri Janke and Company), and Geoff Martin (PhD in Strategy).
The participants will design and develop an ‘Indigenous Business Model’ – a first of its kind that is considerate of commercial realities and cultural obligations that they can then take back and share with their communities.
The Futures Forum will create a network of young people who will be self-governed and self-sustainable in the long term and leading economic development in their communities.
Media contact: Tara Toohill 02 9207 6362 or tara.toohill@iba.gov.au
When Gnaala Karla Booja man Rodney Rankins talks about home ownership, his eyes light up with pride. He became the 19,000th home loan that Indigenous Business Australia (IBA) approved for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since its inception.
Mr Rankins is constructing his home in a new housing development in the Perth suburbs of Western Australia.
‘I never thought I’d be able to own my own home,’ said Mr Rankins. ‘I thought it was going to be much harder, but there’s people to talk to and IBA helped me through the process.
‘There’s a lot to find out and paperwork involved with building a house. IBA pretty much knows everything about it.
IBA’s home ownership program is one of the longest standing programs successfully supporting economic self-management and self-sufficiency for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
A recent Deloitte Access Economics study surveyed over 1000 people who had been through the IBA home loan program and found that nine out ten reported improved living conditions, self-esteem and overall happiness.
The study also found that since inception, the Indigenous Home Ownership Program has generated $895 million in social and economic benefit for homeowners, $483 million in economic activity through construction and over 1200 full time equivalent jobs.
For Mr Rankins, home ownership was always a dream and he encourages others to put the work in to finding your goals.
‘I’ve not felt like that in a long time. I was overwhelmed with happiness. It was awesome!
‘Never stop believing, never stop dreaming…Why reach for the clouds when you can reach for the stars.’
CEO Rajiv Viswanathan says we’re well on our way to our goal of supporting 70,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their families to live in homes they own by 2023.
‘Demand for home loans continues to grow year on year, with current applications at record levels across the country. We’ve seen Western Australia significantly increase in the past three years.
‘Home ownership is a key pillar on the journey to economic independence, providing not only stable housing, but also an anchor from which to build an asset base for current and future generations, and equity for other investment and business opportunities.
‘With over 97 per cent of our loan approvals in WA for first home buyers, we understand this is a new process for them and we want to support them in their success.
‘The home ownership journey is about planning for the future and IBA offers info sessions on our home loan process as well as our recently launched budgeting workshops that provide tools to Indigenous Australians to support them on their path so they are ready for home ownership.
Interview with Rajiv Viswanathan and/or Rodney Rankins available on request. Photos also available on request.
Media contact: Tara Toohill 02 9207 6362 or media@iba.gov.au
IBA provided more home loans in the past financial year than ever before. The journey to home ownership isn’t easy, it takes planning, budgeting, forward thinking and commitment.
IBA has created a budgeting workshop to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their families to better understand the financial responsibilities of buying a home and taking control of their money. IBA’s budgeting workshops are for those interested in applying for their first home loan, but also for existing customers who are interested in learning how to be smarter about their money.
A recent Deloitte Access Economics study surveyed over 1000 people who had been through the IBA home loan program and found that nine out of ten reported improved living conditions, self-esteem and overall happiness.
Participants attending the budgeting workshop will cover topics like understanding the customer’s money story (beliefs, attitudes and values regarding money), developing a money plan, setting goals, preparing for the costs of home ownership, and providing resources for further advice.
Deputy CEO Wally Tallis says, ‘IBA goes further than providing money and works hard to ensure our customers are equipped with the skills and processes of owning a home in order to give them the best chance to succeed. One of the barriers customers identify is financial literacy and budgeting.
‘IBA now provides the opportunity for these customers to attend a budgeting workshop to put the tools in place to be better positioned to manage the costs of owning a home.
‘The lack of intergenerational wealth is a big barrier to home ownership for many of our mob. If we can get people into their first home and keep them there with the right budgeting behaviours, then it sets them up on a positive path for their future.
‘We know that home ownership can provide social and economic benefits through the security of stable housing. We want to provide people with the tools to assist them to be financially ready before committing to home ownership.’
Carmen Cubillo is a Larrakia and Wadjigan woman living in Darwin, Northern Territory. Her story to home ownership is three times the charm. Carmen’s first attempt at home ownership was when she was quite young and IBA agreed to provide her a loan, but she decided it wasn’t the right time for her. Then when she tried again six years ago, she was unsuccessful due to barriers in her financial situation.
In October 2018, Carmen was on her third attempt to get a home loan. While waiting for an invitation to apply, Carmen took the opportunity to attend one of IBA’s new budgeting workshops. When attending the workshop Carmen thought she knew all she needed after successfully getting herself out of debt.
‘I walked in pretty confident. And walked out with a list of things to help me. I learned all this stuff that really helps me now.
Carmen says that it’s important to understand the financial responsibilities of owning your home before putting in an application.
‘They gave us the real deal – what it actually costs when you have a house. Plan for this, plan for that and don’t leave this to the last minute…The workshop was just really valuable in saying that these are the day to day costs of having your house.
‘Don’t get all romanticised about getting the loan. The loan is not the issue. It is the everyday costs after getting a loan.
‘You don’t think about it when you’re younger, you just kinda think that you’ll earn money and it will be fine. But it’s not going to be. Whatever you do now with money, affects you for the rest of your life.
‘You can see budgets any way you like. But the reality is if you don’t have enough money you need to reorganise things so you do.
‘I moved around a lot when I was little so I always dreamt of having a home…I had all these goals and one of them was home ownership. I learned not to ever give up on your dreams.’
In January 2019, Carmen and her 8-year old daughter moved into their first home. Now Carmen and her daughter are living in their own home with a pool. She still follows a strict budget and knows that every cent needs to be accounted.
‘It’s the best thing that ever happened.
‘We had our first swim together and she wrapped her arms around me and said, “we did it Mum, we did it, you and me, this was our dream and we did it together.”
‘It just means the world to us just to have our little patch of land. It’s not the flashest house, but it’s ours.
‘It’s a really emotional journey…but I put the effort in to having a good relationship to money.’
About IBA’s home ownership offering: IBA assists Indigenous Australians into home ownership by providing home loans and support to get ready for home ownership. By owning their own home, Indigenous families and home owners can obtain a secure, safe place to live and build intergenerational wealth.
Media contact: Tara Toohill 02 9207 6362 or tara.toohill@iba.gov.au
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