Rent-to-Own Help Centre

At PublicSquare, we welcome all customers under the age of 50, including both first and second-home buyers.

Unfortunately, we’re unable to assist customers aged 50 or over at this time. This policy is due to restrictions set by banks and lenders, as we must ensure you’re likely to qualify for a home loan at the end of your rent-to-own lease term.

We apologise for any disappointment this may cause. We’re committed to making PublicSquare as inclusive as possible and may review our age restrictions in the future.

Rent-to-Own is currently offered for properties in Queensland and New South Wales, with possible launches planned for other states, including Victoria, subject to local laws and regulations.

At PublicSquare, we take a compassionate and individualized approach to each application. 

We are committed to working with you to fully understand your unique situation and determine the best path forward. 

Our ultimate goal is to help you obtain a home loan with a lender and we recognize that removing a bankruptcy from your credit report is a critical step towards achieving that goal, 

For your own sake, we must be 100% confident that you have the viability to obtain a mortgage after four years. So if you present as a bankruptee, it will be harder for you to receive approval.

Additionally, we are legally obligated to conduct a competitive application process on behalf of property owners who tend to prefer applicants with clean credit histories.

Bills and utilities for PublicSquare properties work the same way as typical rental properties. 

PublicSquare or the owner of the property takes care of all the usual landlord costs that landlords, such as insurance, rates, and the NBN connection, while you connect and pay for your own utilities including electricity and internet. 

To get a full breakdown of the estimated costs for a specific type and price of home, you can complete the pre-approval process and speak with your application manager.

Bond for rent to own homes works just like regular rental properties. We normally cap it at $2,000 to make it a little easier on you. However, in some cases, the owners or property managers of a rent to own property may require a standard 4x the rental portion of your weekly payment.

At PublicSquare, we help you build up a deposit to buy your home by paying weekly contributions. 

Your weekly contributions (50% on top of rent) will accumulate into your deposit, which you can use when you're ready to buy the home as your deposit.

We aim to help you accumulate a deposit amount of at least 5-10% of the home's final purchase price before the end of your 8-year lease term. 

You can also bolster this amount using your savings or support you receive from friends and family. 

For a complete picture of the deposit you can accrue with PublicSquare, we recommend checking out our interactive calculator.

Although not a requirement of all lenders, many will ask to see 5% of genuine cash savings as part of your eventual home loan application.

For lenders who accept rental statements as proof of genuine savings, the property manager will provide the necessary documents.

Your 'buying power' (also known as capacity) is the maximum value of the property you can afford in terms of weekly payment requirements and eventual purchase.

After you complete your pre-approval, we will provide you with an estimate of your buying power which will depend on your income and living expenses. 

We recommend having a play with our online calculator to see what you might reasonably afford. 

One of the great benefits of our rent-to-own program is the flexibility it offers. You have the option to purchase the home at any time in years 4 to 8 of your tenancy agreement, which gives you ample time to build up your deposit and secure the best possible mortgage to complete your purchase.

During this process, we'll keep you up to date about how much deposit you've accumulated and can plan ahead. When you're ready to exercise your purchase option, you can let us know at least a couple of months in advance. This will give us enough time to get the ball rolling and ensure a smooth transition from renting to owning. For the exact details of how to exercise your purchase option, It's important to refer to your contracts or speak directly with our team.

When the time comes, we can provide you with some helpful data about your home and suburb valuation to give you an idea of the current market valuation of your property. This can be useful when communicating with your lender and calculating your deposit amount.

At PublicSquare, we're committed to helping you achieve your dream of homeownership. If you have any questions about the purchase process or anything else related to our rent-to-own program, please don't hesitate to ask.

Please visit our calculator at THIS LINK.

The calculator will help you estimate the costs and benefits of renting-to-own your new home. 

PublicSquare will tap into its investor network to match you with both an investor and a property that aligns with your location and budget. As the homebuyer, you’ll take the lead in inspecting and selecting a property from the open market—just as you would if you were purchasing with a mortgage. PublicSquare will provide clear guidelines and recommendations to help you choose a suitable home and will negotiate with the seller to ensure the property is reasonably priced.

Key property selection guidelines include:

• Must fall within your approved buying power
• No pools, retaining walls, sloping blocks, or flood-prone land
• No properties with excessive clutter, unapproved extensions, or detached sheds/dwellings
• No 'Fixer-Uppers' or properties requiring renovations
• Ideally built within the last 25 years (though some exceptions may be considered)
• No auction-only listings
• Must be acquired as vacant on possession

These criteria help ensure the property is safe, financeable, and suitable for long-term ownership.

If you’re ever unsure whether a property meets the guidelines, you’re always welcome to check with a PublicSquare team member before attending the inspection.

To improve your chances of success, we recommend identifying and submitting at least three properties to PublicSquare, in case a property is not acquired due to price negotiations or another buyer acting first.

Having a good credit score is an important factor when it comes to financial stability. That's why we generally prefer applicants with a credit score of 600 or higher. 

However, we still encourage anyone with a lower credit score to apply for pre-approval and provide any relevant information about their financial situation when asked. 

We review each application case by case, so we're happy to hear about any details related to your credit history. If you've had credit defaults in the past, it's worth noting that they'll usually be cleared from your credit history after five years. 

This means that even if your credit score is currently lower than we'd like, PublicSquare may still be an opportunity for you to get started in the housing market while you work on improving your credit. 

That being said, we also take your future financial health seriously. If we believe that your credit history will continue to impact your eligibility for switching to a mortgage, even after several years, we may have to decline your application for your own best interests.

The First Home Owners Grant cannot be used towards your matchmaking fee because the property will initially be owned by PublicSquare or a participating investor, not you. 

Our goal is to ensure that every customer we work with ends up in a better position than where they started.

If you are unable to obtain a home loan in years 4 through 8 of your tenancy, we can sell the property without charging you a sales commission. This allows you to recover as much of your contributions as possible.

For example, if the market value of your home exceeds the minimum sale price and we sell the home because you cannot secure a mortgage, you will receive a full refund of all your weekly contributions to date, but not the 1.1% Matchmaker Fee.

The only additional expenses you will pay will be a $3,300 marketing fee to cover advertising and photography costs, incurred by listing the property on realestate.com.au. 

Importantly, if the final sale price is less than the minimum sale price, your contribution refund will be reduced to make up the shortfall. But If the final sale price is greater than the maximum sale price, you will receive a profit on top of your contributions refund.

More Info

You can check the minimum sale price calculations on the calculator page. Furthermore, agents typically charge 2.75% in commissions for selling residential properties, which can amount to a $25,000 for a standard home. However, under our Future Mortgage Guarantee, we waive this fee entirely.

To be eligible for the guarantee, you must apply for a home loan and be declined by at least three lenders, including one competitive option provided or referred by PublicSquare. We will provide you with a copy of our Future Mortgage Guarantee terms and conditions before you commit to a property, ensuring you have a chance to review the details. We keep it as straightforward as possible, with all terms and conditions fitting on a single page.

PublicSquare understands the importance of obtaining a home loan as soon as possible within years 4 though 8 of your tenancy agreement.

We aim to provide a transparent and supportive home buying experience which helps to make the process as seamless as possible.

We also strive to ensure that we are only approving customers who are likely to be eligible for a mortgage down the road. 

While PublicSquare offers guidance and support throughout the process, we cannot make any guarantees regarding your ability to obtain a mortgage. 

However, we can refer you to a mortgage broker and work with you and the broker to best prepare for mortgage eligibility. 

If you cant obtain a mortgage, you can also opt to request a sale of the property in the open market, which can earn you reimbursements equalling up to 100% or more of your contributions to date.

When you're ready to purchase your home between years 4 and 8 of your tenancy agreement, we’ll ensure a seamless and transparent process for calculating the final price:

We calculate the guaranteed future purchase price using compounded annual growth rates (CAGRs) as outlined in our online calculator (for example 4-7% in years 7 and 8 for house and land)

Then, when you exercise your purchase option, an independent valuer will assess your property based on current market conditions. The final price will fall within the predetermined price range for that year and will never exceed the independent valuation.

If the market value exceeds the maximum purchase price, you will benefit from the appreciation, gaining greater equity in the property upon purchase.

If either party disagrees with the valuation, there will be options under the contract for ordering a second opinion and taking the average of the two. In that case, the party that disagrees will pay for the second valuation.

If you're worried about the growth of your property dipping under the minimum purchase price during your lease, just remember that you control when you purchase the property within a 4-8-year timeframe, so you can keep an eye on housing prices and exercise your option when it makes sense to you. 

For reference, the minimum future purchase price range via PublicSquare after 6 years, includes a 4% p.a increase for houses, and 3% increase for apartments. In contrast, Australia's national average between 1993-2018 was 6.8% p.a for houses and 5.9% p.a. for apartments, according to CoreLogic. However, it could be higher or lower during your lease. 

Regardless of whether you're renting-to-own or buying a property the traditional way, fluctuating property prices is a risk you should carefully consider.

PublicSquare or the appointed Property Managers will follow the standard Rental Tenancy Agreement rules for conducting physical inspections of the property. 

This usually means that twice every year during the lease, the Property Manager at a reasonable time of the day, after at least two days' notice, will enter the Property and check the Property's state of repair.

This is to ensure that the property is being maintained in good condition and to address any repair needs in a timely manner. If any defects are found during an inspection, the Lessee will be notified in writing and given a reasonable amount of time to make any necessary repairs in accordance with the terms of their lease agreement. 

Interest rates do not affect your lease agreement with PublicSquare. This provides you with protection against changes to the Australian cash rate. 

However, when the time comes to exercise your purchase option, you will need to secure a mortgage, and the interest you pay on your mortgage will then depend on the interest rates of the day.

The standard lease term (i.e. the length of the lease) is eight years but can be extended further through a renewal if agreed to by yourself and the participating owner. 

After four years in the lease, you can buy the home from the participating owner. Alternatively, if you cant obtain a mortgage, you can request a sale of the property in the open market. 

If plans change and you need to exit the lease earlier than four years, please reach out to our friendly support team to help you explore your options which may involve reassigning your lease and buy-option to another family.

At PublicSquare we are committed to providing you with a transparent, straightforward experience that empowers you to make informed decisions about your future home. 

Throughout the process, we supply several legally binding documents that cover all the important information that is already available to you on our website including the Matchmaker contribution, weekly rental payments and contributions, deposit accrual and your options to purchase the property or request it to be sold in the open market.

Additionally, before you sign the lease, PublicSquare requires you to seek some legal advice to ensure you fully understand the details of our agreement. 

Your application manager will simplify the process of obtaining legal advice by providing you and your lawyer with all necessary materials.

The cost of engaging a lawyer for a legal advice report is usually around $1,000 and typically requires only a couple of hours of work from your lawyer. 

If you don't have a lawyer, we can recommend one to you without any conflict of interest.

The owner of your selected property will be responsible for covering maintenance and repair costs during your tenancy under typical RTA lease agreement arrangements. The owner will also be obligated to keep the property insured.

If you are selecting a pre-existing property, before you make an offer, you will have several opportunities to inspect the home and identify any defects. PublicSquare will also engage a qualified building and pest inspector to attend to the property, and we will provide that report to you before you commit to the deal. 

If significant repairs are needed in the first few years, you can choose a different property or if you think it's manageable, you discuss the matter with PubicSquare to determine how these costs might be dealt with between the parties.

To lock in your selected Rent-to-own property, you will be required to pay the Matchmaker fee equalling 1.1% of the Initial Home Value (incl. GST). 

So as an example, if the property you've chosen is $700,000, your total Matchmaker Fee will be $7,700 (Incl. GST)

ThisFee is a much easier and more manageable amount to save when compared to a home loan deposit which may also require a hefty fee for LMI.

At PublicSquare, we assess your serviceability based on your income minus the cost of renting a PublicSquare home and paying your weekly contributions, as well as your current debt repayments and living expenses. 

Having sufficient income to cover these expenses is necessary to obtain approval. To estimate your weekly costs, please visit our Calculator page.

Our team is available to answer any questions you may have after you've been pre-approved. 

You do not need to be a first homebuyer to apply for PublicSquare.

As an online platform, PublicSquare does not offer office appointments like banks. Instead, we provide a range of convenient and efficient ways for customers to connect with our customer service team after they have been pre-approved. 

Customers can chat with the team via the online messaging service, speak to them over the telephone or video call, or access this help centre here on this website. 

When you move into a home, you will meet the property manager face to face who can answer any questions specific to the property. All questions regarding our rent-to-own should be directed to the PublicSquare after you have been pre-approved, 

At PublicSquare, we understand that owning a pet is an important part of many people's lives. That's why we're proud to offer pet-friendly rental properties that allow you to bring your furry friends along with you. 

When renting a property with PublicSquare, you may keep up to two (2) pets in the Property in accordance with all laws and regulations (including any body corporate by-laws). 

However, if you have pets that are greater than 20kg in weight, you will need to seek written approval from the Property Owner via the Property Manager. 

This is to ensure that the property is suitable for your pets and that there are no issues with noise or damage to the property. It's important to note that while we do allow pets in our rental properties, it's your responsibility to ensure that your pets are well-behaved and don't cause any damage to the property. 

You'll also need to make sure that you clean up after your pets and keep them under control at all times. If you're interested in renting a pet-friendly property with PublicSquare, please let your Application Manager know. 

We'll be happy to provide you with more information and answer any questions you may have about our pet policy. Thank you for considering PublicSquare. We look forward to helping you find a home that both you and your furry friends will love.

PublicSquare requires permanent residency or citizenship in Australia in order to qualify for our products. If you expect to receive residency within the next several months we still encourage you to apply!

Life can be unpredictable, but PublicSquare is here to help. 

We understand that circumstances can change, and we offer a hardship policy that includes options for payment deferrals or selling the property if needed. 

It's important to understand that PublicSquare and the participating owner have a financial interest in helping you retain your home and lease agreement if you miss some payments. 

In other words, it's not in anyone's interest to kick you out of your home. So if something goes wrong and you need to defer some payments, we will do as much as possible to help you through it. 

In times of financial hardship, PublicSquare may be able to provide you with more options compared to banks, landlords, or real estate agencies. 

As part of our hardship policy, which you can access on our website, solutions to payment defaults will depend on your unique circumstances and may include temporary payment deferrals, or, if things get really bad, selling the property, which could result in returning most of your contributions to date. 

If you are at risk of defaulting on your payments, we are here to help, and we won't judge you. Please reach out to our support team as soon as possible to arrange a phone call or coffee.

PublicSquare may not be the best fit for customers on pensions or disability.

As part of our duty of care, we must to defer to bank and non bank lending policies to ensure our customers have the greatest chance of success in obtaining mortgages—Even if it is several years in th future.

We aim to support customers of all income levels. However, it's important to note that we must ensure you have adequate income levels to afford your selected property while you prepare to buy it and will access each application case by case.

We require all potential homebuyers to complete a pre-approval form here on our website.

This form assesses various factors such as savings and income to determine your eligibility. 

The form takes around 5 minutes to complete and will not affect your credit score.

Customers will receive their results instantly via email or SMS.

It is important that you make informed decisions about the properties you choose. 

When you've completed your final application and it's time to select potential properties.

PublicSquare will provide you with a range of guidelines and materials throughout the process, such as building and pest inspections.

The participating Investor will be legally obligated to buy and maintain landlord's insurance for your property for the full duration of your lease. 

Normally the policy would include building insurance, flood insurance, and some level of contents insurance. If you require more coverage for your contents, you can speak with the Property Manager about increasing the sum insured. 

For added protection, we also advise our customers to take out a renters insurance policy.

The participating owner may allow you to carry out some limited renovations on your property. Before doing any renovations, please obtain the owner's written approval via the property manager. They can assist you with the process and help ensure that your plans are approved by the owner who will have the final say. 

Living in the property yourself is a requirement of your lease. However, if you want to rent out a room to a flatmate, your Property Manager and the Investor may allow it with prior notification, as long as you continue to reside in the property yourself. 

By default, your lease contract prohibits subleasing, so if you sublet the property without obtaining permission from your Property Manager, you may be in breach of your lease. 

Additionally, insurance coverage may become void if the property is damaged, making you responsible for covering repair costs. Please contact your Property Manager to discuss your requirements.

The average property growth rate in Australia is 6.8% for houses and 5.9% for apartments per year; CoreLogic 1993-2018. 

In exchange for giving you control over when you can buy the property, PublicSquare or the participating owners require a minimum amount of appreciation per annum which you can view in the calculator, being just 4% after 6 years.

If the market doesn't perform well, and you don't want to buy the home anymore, you have the option of requesting a sale of the property in the open market and potentially receiving reimbursements for the majority of your contributions. 

Alternatively, you can continue living in the property for up to 8 years, to see if the market recovers, and you can exercise your buy option at a time that is convenient to to you. 

Regardless of whether you're renting-to-own or obtaining a traditional mortgage, fluctuating property prices is a risk you should carefully consider. For a full estimate of how the numbers work, please visit our calculator.

There are no current limitations to Rent-to-own properties. However the more expensive properties become, the less ability we may have to match you with a suitable investor.

The pre-approval and full application forms are designed to save all the answers, and you can revisit them at any time as long as you don't clear your browser history. 

Your answers and attachments will remain in place when you click the link in the last email we sent you. 

However, to ensure the security of your existing answers, we recommend keeping the form application browser window open on your device until you have fully completed the form.

If during the purchase option period, you cannot obtain a mortgage, you have the option of requesting a sale of the property in the open market (which is the best option after 4 years). By requesting a sale of the property in the open market, you can recoup up to 100% of your contributions or more if the property has performed well. As part of our Future Mortgage Guarantee, if you can't secure a mortgage, we will sell the property without charging you a sales commission. You will however need to cover a marketing fee of $3,300.

One of the benefits of working with PublicSquare is that customers are not required to pay any upfront stamp duty or transfer duty fees, or if they are required—only usually $100.

This allows customers to focus on finding their ideal home without worrying about additional expenses. PublicSquare aims to make the home buying process as stress-free as possible and offers a smooth and hassle-free experience from start to finish. 

Just like buying a regular property, when completing your purchase of your PublicSquare home, you may be obligated to pay stamp duty costs as required in your state or territory.

However, you may receive concessions applicable to your household circumstances and state of residence.

PublicSquare requires an initial access fee of $1,100 which is fulluy refundable if we cannot provide you with a rent to own solution.

If you do proceed, the access fee is credited towards your 1.1% Matchmaker fee,

You will also need to pay a standard rental bond (normally capped at $2,000), as well as a legal advice report which is usually around $1,000. 

You do not need to pay Lender's Mortgage Insurance (LMI) or Stamp Duty upfront, which could save you tens of thousands of dollars. 

However, LMI and Stamp Duty may apply when you switch to a mortgage and complete your purchase.

Wait times depend on how long it takes to get you fully approved, match a suitable investor and property and build the home.

Before you sign or pay anything, the PublicSquare team will work with you to determine your total weekly payment amounts throughout the tenancy agreement.

Your payment amount will be comprised of your weekly rental amount plus weekly contribution, which will be equal to 50% of the rent which builds up into your deposit.

So imagine you pay $600 in rent each week. Just add 50% ($300) as your weekly contributions, for a total of $900 per week. 

The rent amount is decided by the Property Manager who will perform a rental appraisal at the beginning of each lease year to align the rental portion with other similar properties in your suburb, and adhere with all local tenancy laws, which may increase rental caps and freezes but are als capped at 4% by PublicSquare.

If either party disagrees with the rental appraisals, there will be options under the lease for ordering a second opinion and taking the average of the two. For a complete picture of the costs involved with PublicSquare, we recommend checking out the Calculator