If you are considering purchasing your first home there are a number of Homeowner Grants and Concessions that have been made available since early 2020.
The majority of these measures are aimed at new construction or first home buyers however there are several that will assist others in the market for a new home or significant renovations to an existing home. You can qualify for one or all of these concessions, each one has its own set of criteria and if you meet the criteria for all of them you can potentially obtain significant assistance. First Home Buyers should be aware however, that home loan applications will still need to be approved by your chosen bank and they will need to be satisfied that you are able to meet your repayment obligations.
NSW Stamp Duty Concessions
This concession is aimed at First Home buyers and boosting the construction industry, however, there are some concessions available for existing homes. The basic details of the concessions are:
- Applies only to First Home buyers/owners only,
- The concession is either an elimination or reduction in stamp duty payable,
- The home must be lived in by the purchaser/s,
- The scheme has limits on the cost of the relevant property and those costs vary between land, existing homes and new construction.
- You must move into the home within 12 months of purchase and live in the home for a continuous period of at least 6 months
The following table shows the relevant thresholds and savings:
| Property Type | Existing stamp duty amount for eligible first home buyers | New stamp duty amount for eligible first home buyers | Saving |
| Vacant Land $350,000 | $0 | $0 | No Change |
| Vacant Land $400,000 | $7,793 | $0 | $7,793 |
| New Home $650,000 | $0 | $0 | No Change |
| New Home $700,000 | $10,445 | $0 | $10,445 |
| New Home $800,000 | $31,335 | $0 | $31,335 |
| New Home $900,000 | $35,835 | $20,168 | $15,668 |
| Existing Home $650,000 | $0 | $0 | No Change |
| Existing Home $800,000 | $31,335 | $31,335 | No Change |
For first home buyers of you can fins a new property under $800,000 or an existing property under $650,000 then no stamp duty will be payable. Above these thresholds there will be a reduction in stamp duty payable until such time as the upper limit is reached.
First Home Owners Grant
The NSW Government also offers a $10,000 First Home Owner Grant.
Conditions to qualify for this grant are more stringent and are as follows:
- Must be a new home or equivalent building package,
- Purchase price must be no more than $600,000 or $760,000 if you are buying land and constructing a home on it,
- You must move into the home within 12 months ad live in it for at least 6 continuous months,
- You must not have purchased a home previously,
- A new home is one where it is the first time it has ever been sold and has never been lived in previously,
- Substantially renovated homes will qualify but MOST of the home must have been removed or replaced, it must be the first sale since the renovation and must not have been lived in during or after the renovation.
Due to the relatively low threshold of purchase price of a property this grant has more limited application in metropolitan areas.
First Home Loan Deposit Scheme
The First home loan deposit scheme is an initiative of the Commonwealth Government. It assists those who do not have a deposit of between 5% and 20% in obtaining finance without the need for Mortgage Lenders Insurance. There are up to 10,000 places nationally in this scheme with 5,000 released on 1 January and the remaining 5,000 released on 1 July.
The conditions for the scheme are as follows:
- You must apply through one of the participating lenders when you apply for your loan. Not all lenders are participants in the scheme and each lender has a limited number of places available. It is up to the lender to allocate the places in the scheme to those they feel require it most. Even if you meet all the criteria you are not guaranteed a place in the scheme.
- The property must be residential property. It is available for either new construction or existing homes.
- The scheme is income tested with single individuals on an income of up to $125,000 eligible and couples with a combined income of up to $200,000 eligible. This income is taken form the previous financial year.
- Only couples who are married or de-facto are eligible. Family combinations such as siblings or even friends are not eligible.
- Participants must live in the property.
- Only available to First Home buyers.
- In NSW the property price threshold is $700,000 in Sydney, metropolitan areas and regional centres. The threshold is $450,000 for the rest of the state. Other states have differing thresholds. Once the cost of the property exceeds the threshold it no longer qualifies for the scheme.
HomeBuilder
The HomeBuilder scheme is a short term grant program to assist in the recovery of the construction industry from the Coronavirus crisis.
Unlike the previous schemes this scheme is not limited to First Home Buyers. A grant of $25,000 is available where the following conditions are met:
- Your income does not exceed $125,000 for individuals or $200,000 for a couple,
- You enter into a building contract between 4 June 2020 and 31 December 2020,
- The contract is for either:
- Construction of a new home to live in where the value does not exceed $750,000 or
- Substantially renovate your existing home and the renovation contract is between $150,000 and $750,000 and the total value of the property does not exceed $1,500,000.
- Construction must commence within 3 months of the contract date,
- Investment properties do not qualify,
- Applications are made through your State Authority and payments are made directly to you.