About 12 years ago, at the height of Western Australia's mining boom, the Glencross family returned to Perth after a stint in the UK and were ready to settle down.

Key points: Keystart has issued more than 100,000 low-deposit loans over its 30-year life

Keystart has issued more than 100,000 low-deposit loans over its 30-year life It boasts a low loan default rate, despite its interest rates being higher than the banks

It boasts a low loan default rate, despite its interest rates being higher than the banks But WA's depressed housing market has locked many borrowers into high-interest loans

Despite both being employed, and having squirrelled away some modest savings, Geoff and Felicity Glencross quickly realised getting a foot in the door of the Perth housing market was going to be much harder than they had anticipated.

"We thought we'd come home, be with family, find work, buy a house," Ms Glencross said.

"We hadn't realised how difficult it was to actually get into the home market at that point.

"The requirement for a deposit seemed completely out of reach."

Just as they had resigned themselves to a future of renting, an advertisement on the radio stopped them in their tracks.

Under the WA Government's Keystart scheme, they could get into their own home with just a 2 per cent deposit and they would not have to pay mortgage insurance.

It sounds too good to be true, but a 30-year track record suggests it is not.

The Keystart scheme was first introduced in 1989 under the Labor Party.

Since then, it has enjoyed bipartisan support from successive state governments who have expanded it over the years in a bid to stimulate WA's housing construction sector.

After three decades of growth, it now has a loan book worth $4.8 billion, it has issued more than 100,000 low deposit home loans and has a default rate 30 per cent below the industry standard.

In short, it works.

There is just one catch

The catch for buyers is that Keystart's interest rates are higher than the banks.

The rate premium is added to serve as an incentive for people to transition away from the loan, once they have secured some equity in their property, and refinance with another more competitive lender.

That then frees up a Keystart loan for someone else.

On top of the Keystart loan, the Glencross family also qualified for a shared equity scheme that saw the Government purchase 40 per cent of their property.

For the Glencross family, the Keystart program provided stability. ( ABC News: Charlotte Hamlyn )

They weren't looking for an investment, they needed a roof over their heads, so the proposal suited them.

"I feel like we hit the jackpot," Ms Glencross said.

"We can enjoy our lives without having to feel that it's all about having to pay off the house first. That wouldn't be any life for our daughter.

"All we wanted was a bit of stability … I'm very grateful."

Push for national Keystart rollout

Ahead of the federal election, Prime Minister Scott Morrison put the great Australian dream high on his election agenda, vowing to make it easier for first homebuyers to get into the market.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 1 minute 47 seconds 1 m 47 s Scott Morrison makes first home buyers election pledge

His affordable housing proposal would enable people on single annual incomes of $125,000 or couples with a dual income of $200,000 to purchase a new home with a 5 per cent deposit.

It is different to Keystart in that it offers a loan guarantee rather than an actual loan.

But Western Australia Housing Minister Peter Tinley said Mr Morrison needed look no further than WA for a model that worked.

And he said there was no reason why Keystart could not be rolled out nationally.

"No other jurisdiction has this sort of model," Mr Tinley said.

"They've had them in the past and they've actually failed."

WA Housing Minister Peter Tinley says the Keystart model could work on a national level. ( ABC News: Charlotte Hamlyn )

He said Western Australia had been having conversations with the Commonwealth about the wider appeal of Keystart for years and would continue to liaise with the Federal Housing Minister Michael Sukkar.

"There is a genuine case to have a nationally sponsored, state-based, franchised system of government lending," Mr Tinley said.

"I think the Keystart model here in Western Australia has a national story to play."

Market decline leaves many 'stuck' in Keystart loans

The president of the Real Estate Institute of WA Damian Collins said the program was widely celebrated by industry experts, but a national rollout would require a big upfront investment.

REIWA president Damian Collins says the current housing market is presenting fresh challenges. ( ABC News: Charlotte Hamlyn )

"It's expensive to raise the money," he said.

"The Government has to get that from issuing bonds or borrowing otherwise and it's a lot of debt.

"[In] states like Victoria or NSW, which are much larger, it might be politically hard to get off the ground now.

"It just so happens we've had it going for a long time and it's worked well, so people are comfortable with it."

He said while the scheme had seen a long period of growth and success, WA's current housing market presented fresh challenges.

"The whole scheme's objective was to get people into their first home, then when they could afford to refinance, get out," Mr Collins said.

"With the market downturn there would be a lot of people stuck in Keystart loans because they can't get out, because they haven't got that equity to go and refinance elsewhere."

Ms Glencross said her family planned to stick with the Keystart loan as long as possible, saying it was continuing to enable them to do other things with their savings, including renovating their small home as their needs changed.

"We've been able to stay here, had freedom to make it our own," she said.

"Quite frankly I still walk into my house every day and go, 'I love my little home'."

