Withdrawing Your KiwiSaver Contributions To Purchase Your First Home
Finding Out if You’re Eligible to Withdraw Your KiwiSaver Contributions
You may be eligible to withdraw all or some of your KiwiSaver contributions toward purchasing your first home if you have been enrolled in KiwiSaver for three years or more. This withdrawal can be a very significant contribution toward the deposit under the contract, and toward the total purchase price for the property.
There are also other eligibility criteria. You must intend to live at the property (it cannot be an investment). If you have owned property before, you will also need to obtain confirmation from Housing New Zealand that you qualify for second-chance eligibility. You can obtain more information about the eligibility process and the criteria on the Housing New Zealand website.
The KiwiSaver Withdrawal Process
Before you begin the process of looking for your first home, you should contact your KiwiSaver provider for an estimate of funds that you can withdraw. The forms are available from your KiwiSaver provider directly – typically they are available on their website.
You will also need to make sure that any settlement date in your purchase agreement gives you enough time to make the withdrawal in time for settlement. The application process can take between 10 to15 working days (depending on your provider). KiwiSaver may also need to be taken into account in relation to the other aspects of your financing, including bank lending (and a valuation if you need one) and the HomeStart grant if eligible, and a condition will need to be included in your purchase agreement allowing enough time to satisfy your banks requirements.
You can withdraw either a specified amount of your savings or all of your available balance excluding the government “kickstart” of $1000. Your KiwiSaver funds can, in specific circumstances, be used as payment of the deposit under the contract (with any leftover applied at settlement), or alternatively, and in most instances,the KiwiSaver funds will be used at settlement.
Need Assistance Completing Your KiwiSaver Form?
Once your conditional contract is, in most cases, unconditional, you’ll need tocomplete the KiwiSaver withdrawal forms. One of our lawyers can assist you right through the application process, including helping you complete the form and taking your statutory declaration. We will then send the application off to your KiwiSaver provider on your behalf, who will then pay the funds to our trust account.
Streamlining the KiwiSaver withdrawal process is part of what we do best here at HomeLegal. For KiwiSaver assistance, contact the HomeLegal team today!
