Commonwealth Numbered Acts

Home Deposit Assistance Act 1982 No. 40 of 1982 - SECT 4

4. (1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears-

         ''acceptable savings'' means acceptable savings as defined by section
21;

         ''amount of the prescribed earnings'', in relation to a sole
applicant or joint applicants, means the amount of the prescribed earnings of
the applicant or applicants as defined in section 33;

         ''applicant'' means a person who, in accordance with sub-section 16
(2), signs, or is deemed by virtue of a direction under sub-section 16 (3) to
have signed, an application, other than a person in respect of whom a
direction under section 5 is in force in relation to that application;

         ''application'' means an application for a grant;


''approved interest'' means-

   (a)  an estate in fee simple;

   (b)  an interest as purchaser of an estate in fee simple from the Crown in
        right of a State or of the Northern Territory where payment of the
        purchase price is to be made by instalments over a period of years;

   (c)  an estate for life approved by the Secretary for the purposes of this
        Act;

   (d)  a lease for a term of years if the Secretary is satisfied that the
        lease gives reasonable security of tenure to the lessee for a
        substantial period;

   (e)  a licence or right of occupancy from the Crown in right of the
        Commonwealth, of a State or of the Northern Territory if the Secretary
        is satisfied that the licence or right of occupancy gives reasonable
        security of tenure to the licensee or holder of the right;

   (f)  an interest of the kind referred to in section 13; or

   (g)  any other interest declared by the regulations to be an approved
        interest for the purposes of this Act;

         ''building society'' means a society registered or incorporated as a
building society or as a co-operative housing society under the law in force
in a State or internal Territory relating to building societies or
co-operative housing societies, and includes a society registered under Part I
of the Building and Co-operative Societies Act, 1901, of New South Wales;

         ''credit union'' means a society or other body of persons-


   (a)  that is registered or incorporated as a credit union or credit society
        under the law in force in a State or internal Territory relating to
        credit unions or credit societies; or

   (b)  whose principal business consists of borrowing moneys from its members
        and lending those moneys to its members and which is registered or
        incorporated under the law in force in a State or internal Territory
        relating to such societies or bodies of persons;

         ''deceased spouse'', in relation to an applicant, means a person who
died before the prescribed date and was, on the date of his or her death, the
spouse of the applicant;

         ''Department'' means the Department of Housing and Construction;


         ''grant'' means a grant under this Act;


         ''joint applicant'' means any one of 2 or more persons who are
applicants in respect of the same application;

         ''lease'' includes sub-lease;


         ''officer'' means a person exercising powers, or performing duties or
functions, under or in relation to this Act;

         ''prescribed date'', in relation to a sole applicant who has, or
joint applicants one of whom has, or 2 or more of whom together have, entered
into a contract of a kind referred to in paragraph 15 (1) (a) or (b), or
commenced the construction of a dwelling as referred to in paragraph 15 (1)
(c) (whether or not the construction has been completed), means the date that
is the date of the contract for the purposes of section 15 or the date on
which the construction commenced, as the case may be;

         ''prescribed person'', in relation to a dwelling, means a person who
is a prescribed person in relation to that dwelling by virtue of sub-section
15 (1), other than a person in respect of whom a direction under section 5 is
in force in relation to that dwelling;

         ''relevant savings period'', in relation to a sole applicant or joint
applicants, means the period that, under sub-section (2), is the relevant
savings period in relation to the applicant or applicants, as the case may be;

         ''rural property'' means-


   (a)  land used wholly or substantially for carrying on the business of
        primary production; or

   (b)  land that the Secretary is satisfied should, having regard to its
        extent, location, use or zoning, be regarded as a rural property for
        the purposes of this Act;

     ''savings bank'' means-


   (a)  a savings bank within the meaning of the Banking Act 1959;

   (b)  State Bank of Victoria;

   (c)  The State Bank of South Australia;

   (d)  The Savings Bank of South Australia;

   (e)  The Rural and Industries Bank of Western Australia;

   (f)  The Cairns Co-operative Weekly Penny Savings Bank Limited; and

   (g)  any other bank determined by the Secretary, by notice published in the
Gazette, to be a savings bank for the purposes of this Act;

         ''Secretary'' means the Secretary to the Department;


         ''sole applicant'' means an applicant other than a joint applicant;


         ''trading bank'' means-


   (a)  a trading bank within the meaning of the Banking Act 1959;

   (b)  State Bank of New South Wales;

   (c)  The State Bank of South Australia;

   (d)  The Rural and Industries Bank of Western Australia; and

   (e)  any other bank determined by the Secretary, by notice published in the
        Gazette, to be a trading bank for the purposes of this Act.

(2) Where the Secretary is satisfied, in relation to a sole applicant or
joint applicants, that acceptable savings were held continuously by the
applicant or by any of the applicants throughout a period that commenced on a
particular date and ended immediately before the prescribed date, that period
is, for the purposes of this Act, the relevant savings period in relation to
the applicant or applicants.

(3) A reference in this Act to moneys borrowed by a person shall be read as
including a reference to moneys borrowed by that person together with another
person or other persons.

(4) For the purposes of this Act, a dwelling shall not be taken to be a
dwelling, in relation to a person or persons, if the Secretary is satisfied
that it would be unreasonable to regard that dwelling as suitable for the
purposes of constituting the principal place of residence of the person or
persons.