First home owners grant

LEARN HOW IT MAY IMPACT YOU AS A FIRST HOME BUYER

Stamp duty, also referred to as land transfer duty, is a tax that is paid when you buy a property, regardless of whether it’s an investment property or your primary residence. It’s the tax paid on the transfer of the land from one party to another, and generally must be paid within 30 days of your property settling.

The amount of stamp duty you pay as the purchaser depends on the following factors:

• your property’s value
• how you will use your property
• if you’re a foreign buyer 
• if you are eligible for any concessions or exemptions.

In addition to a land transfer duty exemption/concession, you may be eligible for a First Home Owner Grant. The grant is a payment made to you, whereas the duty exemption/concessions are a reduction in the amount of stamp duty you pay.

CONCESSIONS AND EXEMPTIONS

If you are a first home buyer and satisfy the eligibility requirements for the First Home Owners Grant and the home will be your principal place of residence (which means you must live in the property for at least 12 months, commencing within 12 months of settlement), you may be eligible for: 

• First home buyer duty exemption: a duty exemption if the property you buy is valued at $600,000 or less.
• First home buyer duty concession: a duty concession for a residence with a dutiable value from $600,001 to $750,000

Alternatively, you may be eligible for other stamp duty concessions including:

• Principal place of residence concession: a duty concession for when a property you buy, valued up to $550,000, is intended as your principal place of residence.
• Off the plan concession: a duty concession for an off-the-plan property, provided you qualify for either the principal place of residence concession or the first-home buyer duty exemption or concession.

To help calculate your stamp duty rate, visit this helpful Stamp Duty calculator or the Victorian State Revenue Office for more information.


^{Disclaimer: Concessions, rebates, exemptions and grants are offered by the Victorian government and are subject to terms and conditions. This article does not take into the terms of, or account eligibility criteria for, any other concessions, rebates, exemptions and grants offered to purchasers by the Victorian government. Interested parties are required to make their own investigations as to eligibility for concessions, rebates, exemptions and grants. Whilst Lendlease has endeavoured to ensure that the information in this article is correct as at January 2020, it is subject to change and no warranty, express or implied, is given as to its accuracy. Lendlease disclaims any liability for any loss, damage or claim of whatever nature or kind (including negligence) suffered, sustained or incurred by any party which arises out of any alleged reliance this article.}