First Home Buyers

As a first home buyer in NSW, you may be eligible for a full exemption or reduced rate of transfer duty under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme.

What is it?

If you are a first home buyer purchasing an existing property worth $800,000 or less, you can receive full exemption from transfer duty, or stamp duty as it is commonly known. If the property is worth between $800,000 and $1 million, you may be eligible for a reduced rate.

If you buy vacant land to build a house on that is worth $350,000 or less, you may be eligible for an exemption. If the land is worth between $350,000 and $450,000 you may be eligible for a reduced rate. 

To get an idea, at Huntlee, duty on a housing package would be approximately $28,000 and a minimum of $10,000 for vacant land.

Use this handy Transfer Duty Calculator to help you work it out for your property.

Are you eligible for the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme?

There are certain criteria you need to meet to be eligible for the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme;

• • You must be 18 years or over.
  • You must be an individual, not a trust or company.
  • The value of the property must be within the threshold amounts.
  • You or at least one of your co-buyers must be an Australian citizen or a permanent resident.
  • You are not eligible if you or your spouse have applied for the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme previously.
  • You are not eligible if you or your spouse have owned or co-owned a residential property in Australia previously.
  • If your circumstances change so that you cannot meet the residence requirements, you will no longer be eligible for the government grant.

For contracts exchanged on or after 1 July 2023, you or your co-buyers must move into the property within 12 months of the settlement date and live there as your principal place of residence for at least 12 months. 

For contracts exchanged between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2023, you or your co-buyers must move into the property within 12 months of the settlement date and live there as your principal place of residence for at least 6 months. 

If you are a member of the Australian Defence Force when you exchange contracts, you won’t have to meet residence requirements providing all buyers are on the NSW electoral roll.

You can check out how much you can save using the First Home Buyers Assistance calculator. 

Check the key definitions and eligibility criteria for more information. This includes possible exemptions to the above. 

How to apply

You can lodge your application for the government grant with your solicitor or conveyancer. You will be asked to provide supporting documents and identification. 

You can download the forms for the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme from the NSW government website.

What is it?

The first home owners grant is worth $10,000. It can be used to support the purchase of your first home, whether you buy or build a property. It is not available for established homes.

Are you eligible for the First Home Owner Grant?

 There are certain criteria you need to meet to be eligible for the first home owners grant.

• You must be an individual, not a company or trust.
• You must be aged over 18.
• You, or at least one person you’re buying with must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
• You are not eligible if you or your spouse have received an Australian First Home Owner Grant previously.
• You are not eligible if you or your spouse have previously owned a property before 1 July 2000, either jointly or separately. But you may be eligible if you haven’t lived in it for more than six months on or after 1 July 2000.

For contracts exchanged before 1 July 2023.

• You must live in your first home as your principal place of residence within 12 months of buying or from building completion. 
• The minimum period of occupancy is six continuous months.

For contracts exchanged on or after 1 July 2023.

• You must live in your first home as your principal place of residence within 12 months of buying or from building completion. 
• The minimum period of occupancy is 12 continuous months.

If you’re a member of the Australian Defence Force, you may be exempt from the six or 12-month residence requirement, providing all buyers are on the NSW electoral roll. 

Property value thresholds

The total value of your first home must not exceed $600,000 if the property is either newly constructed or ‘substantially renovated’. Substantially renovated is defined as most or all the original house being removed or replaced. It must be the first time the property has been sold and lived in after the renovations are complete.

If you plan to build on vacant land, the total value of the land and property must not exceed $750,000. If you buy land and sign a building contract (or are the builder), the total value is calculated as the land plus the value of the building contract plus the cost of any building variations.

How to apply

Apply for the first home owners grant when you are arranging your finance through your lender. You will be asked for supporting documents and identification.

If you’ve already completed the purchase or construction, you can lodge your application through the First Home Owner Grant portal.

This government grant was designed to make home ownership more achievable for people who might otherwise not be approved for a mortgage. This often includes key workers, single parents and single people aged 50 years and over.

What is it?

The Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper is available to support the purchase of property; vacant land with the plan of building a new property; or a property due to be built where a previous home was demolished.

Under the Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper, the NSW government will contribute up to 40% of the price of a new home, or 30% for an existing property. Under this scheme, buyers can potentially get their deposit down to as little as 2%. It means that although the government receives an equity share of your property, the mortgage and home is yours until you are no longer eligible, or you sell the property.

You will not have to make repayments or pay interest on the government's share, although you can make voluntary contributions. There’s no lenders’ insurance to pay on the government’s equity share and mortgage repayments will be reduced.

For more detailed information on the policy visit the NSW government website.

Are you eligible for the Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper?

There are certain criteria you need to meet to be eligible for the Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper.

• This government grant is only for people who cannot secure mortgage approval without government assistance.
• You must be 18 years of age or over.
• You must be an Australian or New Zealand citizen (or permanent Australian resident), and either a single parent, older single or eligible key worker. You can find the definition here.
• You must be able to make your mortgage repayments alongside the government contributions.
• You must be able to contribute a minimum 2% of the purchase price towards the deposit.
• You must be able to cover the associated costs of purchasing the property, including conveyancing and legal fees, building inspections and transfer duty.
• You must live in the property you purchase.
• You cannot own any other land or property.
• The property cannot be used as primary production land, a business premise or holiday home.
• At least one of the eligible purchasers must be ready to occupy the property as their principal place of residence from the day of settlement.
• Your gross income must be less than $93,200 for single applicants or $124,200 for couples.
• If you have financial assets worth over $100,000, you may be required to contribute some or all the amount at settlement.

How to apply

The Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper currently has two lending partners to choose from and they will lodge your application on your behalf. You will need to discuss your application with your chosen lender before applying.

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The lender will require proof that you have the capacity to cover the repayments on top of your household and personal expenses. They will want to see your income, savings, and assets to demonstrate that you can contribute over time. You’ll also need to prove you have regular, ongoing employment.

Your lending partner will ask you to complete an asset test. Financial assets include currency and deposits; securities (shares, bonds, investments); loans; lump sum payments from a superannuation fund and a share of the net fixed assets of a business.