Move in and
live in from 2.5%

1

Move in from JUST 2.5%

A 20% deposit can take years to save. With Aera, get on the runway to home ownership faster.
2

Start owning from day one

With every monthly payment, you build towards your ownership journey.
3

Buy at an agreed fixed price

Before you start, you’ll know what you will eventually buy your home for.

Are you ready for Aera?

Use our handy calculator to see if you might be eligible for our First Home Accelerator
$
$

With Aera, you could afford a house worth:

$X

Your Aera starter fee would be:

$X

Traditionally, houses worth this much would require a 20% deposit of:

$X

You could afford a house worth:

$X

Since we're starting in Auckland with houses (not apartments), that house value is a bit below our target range.

As you continue your savings journey, we'd encourage you to check out Aera Accelerated Savings, which offers higher rates than traditional banks on savings accounts.

Here’s how it will work

Coming in 2023

Sign up for early access today
You’ll be first in line for the First Home Accelerator and Accelerated Savings products in 2023.

Sign up here

Open your Aera Savings Account
Use Aera for your spending and savings, earn 5%* interest and build towards 2.5% for your home.

5%* Savings

Agree on the house you’ll buy
When you’re ready, Aera will have options or criteria for housing (starting in Auckland) to choose from.

$850,000

Start from 2.5% down
If accepted, you pay a deposit starting from 2.5% of the property value before moving into your home.

First Home Accelerator:

$850,000
× 2.5%
= $21,250

Make monthly payments
Similar to renting and saving up a deposit, but lets you get started now in the home you want to own.

$4,000–$5,000

Build towards your purchase
Your monthly payments grow your deposit credit in the house to get you mortgage ready over time.

Buy at a locked in price
When mortgage-ready, you buy the house outright. Pay the pre-agreed price locked in at the start, knowing the market can’t run away from you.

Why we’re doing this.

A 20% deposit is unattainable for many Kiwis earning a good income. You can only save what is leftover after rent and other expenses, and over the long run the housing market keeps moving away from you, making 20% a bigger and bigger target to hit.

We see an opportunity to work with first home buyers to help accelerate your home ownership journey, using your rent and savings to build ownership in your first home.

Have questions? Visit our FAQ section for answers.

On-Call
Savings at 5%*

Saving for that first home deposit?
Get on the on-ramp to home ownership with Accelerated Savings.

High interest savings

The benefits of an on-call savings account with 5%* interest earned.

Earn on all your accounts (COMING SOON)

Aera membership accounts will target a variety of interest rates to give you maximum flexibility.

Build a pattern of saving

As you save, you develop a history with us to help you get into your first home.
A graph growing to the right, depicting interest earned using Aera at 5% versus the industry standard of 1%.
An image of an iPhone with the Aera app. Peeking from behind the phone is the Aera membership card.

Spend anywhere,
save everywhere.

With a membership card that works the same as any Visa card, you can spend your cash anywhere Visa is accepted and withdraw from any ATM in the world.

Simple and easy.

Home ownership starts here.

How is it 2.5% not 20%?

Instead of slowly saving for a 20% deposit while the market runs away from you, we aim to get you into a house and making payments towards ownership as soon as possible.

With Aera, if we know your combined rent and savings each month, we can make an assessment as to your ability to make consistent payments towards ownership of a house.

Aera owns the house while you earn, save, and make monthly payments. Those monthly payments build your deposit credit in the house, until you're able to transfer over to a more traditional mortgage offering. That initial amount is your first step towards home ownership, and each subsequent monthly payment gets you further and further down the path.

Still have questions? Visit our FAQ section for more information.

How can we offer 5%* interest?

We’re here to be partners on your savings journey. Our goal with our savings product is to assist with your spending and saving habits, so that you can save for the initial deposit for the First Home Accelerator.

Typical banks make money from customers 'lazy cash' balances by paying out next to no interest on short term everyday accounts. They lend that same money out at much higher rates. If you have lots of money you can access much better rates than if you don't, which we think is unfair.

We’re not a bank, but we are using similar tools as banks and  wealth management firms use but instead pass on as much of that difference as possible to everyday Kiwis like you.

Ready to get started?

Fill out this short form and be one of the first to take part.