Celebrating Valentines Day with keys to a new home

• NAB reports 30% increase in first home buyer loans across Australia.
• NAB ‘Goals’ data reveals a 60% increase in homeownership goals in the NAB app.
• Jess and Travis Collison will be moving into their first home on Valentine’s Day.

When Jess ordered new furniture for her rental property, she didn’t expect to meet her future husband at the front door as the delivery driver. Eleven years later, they’re settling into their first home together – on Valentines Day.

The couple, now married with two kids, recently purchased their first home in Kooringal, NSW with the help of NAB and the Government’s Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS).

“When we realised we would be moving in on Valentine’s Day we had a laugh. This year we will be celebrating with a new house and lots of unpacking!” said Jess, ahead of their Friday 14th move.

“A fitting twist and a nice way to mark a new chapter for our family.”

The couple had been renting in Wagga Wagga for years, but as their children grew, so did their need for space and the financial security that comes with homeownership.

“We started seeing more about the HGS and realised we might be able to purchase our first home sooner than we thought. So, we booked in a chat with our NAB home lender and began the search,” said Jess.

NAB data shows a 30% increase* in first home buyer loans across the country, with many buyers taking advantage of government schemes to enter the market sooner.

“Some of this growth is seasonal, but with rate cuts expected this year, we are seeing market activity pick up,” said NSW based NAB Home Lending Executive Felix Sekulla.

“Affordability in regional areas like Wagga Wagga is helping some first home buyers make the leap from renting to owning their own home.

“And programs like the HGS are making it possible to buy with a lower deposit, meaning more Australians don’t have to wait as long as they thought to get on the property ladder.”

NAB app data also reveals a 60% increase** in homeownership goals as Aussies set their savings intentions for the new year.

“We didn’t expect our house hunt to move so quickly,” said Jess.

“We centred our search around Kooringal, a suburb just next to where we’d been renting. Surprisingly we made an offer on the first house we looked at.

“We put an offer in the same day and by the next afternoon it was ours.”

Notes to editors: 

• *First home buyer loans July – December 2024 vs the six months prior.
• **Homeownership goals made in the NAB mobile app in January 2025 Vs the month prior.