Liam Crowe from Illawarra Credit Union said raising the deposit is often seen as a conundrum but there are solutions.

“A colleague … she and her partner were like ‘we don’t think we’ll ever save, it’s like the chicken and egg thing – by the time we feel we would have saved enough deposit the prices have gone up so much we’ll have to save [more]’,” Mr Crowe said.

He said one option is for first homebuyers to use the government grant of $10,000 (for new builds) as part of the deposit.

If funding the difference is still too much to save, Mr Crowe said in some cases the buyer can get away with just five per cent of the total deposit.

“Yes, there is a premium they pay for that, but it can be added to the loan,” he said.

“It gets these people into the market so they’re not forever playing catch up, they’re actually in there and building equity in their home.”

He also said it’s still “technically” possible to get 100 per cent loans if the buyers have willing parents or someone else to put up a property as security.

Rather than getting a second mortgage, Mr Crowe said helpful mums and dads could use a “portion” of their home’s equity.

This also gives them the ability to help fund deposits for each of their children.

The other way to afford the deposit is to be “gifted” the money.

However, Mr Crowe said the buyer would still need to show the bank a strong savings pattern – which can include a solid rental history – and prove they are a good credit risk.

“The last thing we want is to lend money to people who can’t afford it,” he said.

Meantime Josh Bignell from RMB Lawyers said other common questions racking the brains of first homebuyers relate to the process, such as understanding the legal terms in a contract and what property reports they need to look at.

“It’s a very daunting process for most who haven't been through it, so a lot of what we try to do is not overly complicate what can be pretty complex and give it in nice bite size chunks,” Mr Bignell said.

First homebuyers need to be able to make informed decisions, he said, and should do their homework on what’s required when buying a new or old home.

“Whether it’s pest and building reports, review of council documentation for approvals, if it’s vacant land looking at what you can build, if it’s off the plan going through all the plans,” he said.

Stamp duty concessions is another area of confusion.

If buying a new home an exemption from stamp duty applies on properties valued up to $550,000, and concessions on new homes valued between $550,000 and $650,000.

First-time purchasers buying a vacant block pay no duty on land valued up to $350,000. They also receive concessions for vacant land valued up between $350,000 and $450,000

Liam Crowe will be speaking with Josh Bignell and Simon Kersten from Colliers International at a free seminar for first-timers about all the big questions on Saturday October 22 at Wollongong Tennis Club from 2pm.

* Help to get a foot in the door of property

* Singles priced out of the market