Am I eligible?
At least one applicant must be an Australian Citizen, Permanent Resident or a New Zealand Citizen who is the holder of a special category visa under s32 of the Migration Act at the date of application.
Applicants must not have been paid a first home owner grant or received the first home owner rate of duty in any State or Territory of Australia or have had to repay the grant or duty as a result of an investigation by the Commissioner.
$10,000 FHOG
If you are building a new home, purchasing a brand-new home or a substantially renovated home, then you may be eligible for a one-off government grant of $10,000.
In this blog, we’ll stick to deciphering how the grant relates to building a new home or purchasing a brand-new/off the plan home as there are many complex items to consider when purchasing a substantially renovated home and best to discuss this further with your broker and/or the Office of State Revenue. We’ll also assume that you are not an owner builder and you have a Fixed Priced Building Contract with a Registered Builder.
Value of house and land
If you are building in the Perth Metro area, you will be eligible provided your house and land value does not exceed $750,000.
When will the $10K be paid?
If you are purchasing a new or off the plan home and applying for the grant via an approved agent (Financial Institution/Broker), then this will be paid at date of settlement.
If you have already bought the new property and submit the application yourself, the grant would be paid after you provide evidence to State Revenue that your name has been registered on the Certificate of Title of the property.
If you are building, then the grant would be paid after you or the approved agent has provided evidence of the date of the first construction progress payment, usually slab down, and your name is registered on the Certificate of Title of the property.
Important to remember if you are constructing as part of a house and land package, the $10K will not be paid upon settlement of the land, it will only be paid once there has been construction activity on the block and you or the bank has provided evidence of the date of the first construction progress payment, usually at the slab down stage.
Living in the home requirements
You must live in the home as your principle place of residence for at least six continuous months commencing within 12 months of completion of the build/settlement. For example, if the completion of your build was 1st of January 2019, then you have until 31st December 2019 to move in and must live there for at least 6 months on an ongoing basis.
Vacant Land ? Stamp Duty
If you purchase a block of land for less than $300,000, then you will not be charged any stamp duty as a first home buyer. If the block of land is between $300,001 to $400,000 then you will be charged a concessional rate of stamp duty.
If you purchase the block of land before you sign any building contracts, then you will have to pay the residential rate of stamp duty. Once you have the building contract, your settlement agent can assist you in applying for an assessment or reassessment of the First Home Owners Grant to obtain a reimbursement.
Broker’s Role in all of this
Your broker will assist you with the required forms and paperwork. The lender will lodge the FHOG application and your broker and the lender will liaise to ensure the process runs as smoothly as possible.
Here is a link to the forms and the Office of State Revenue website where you can find further information but please keep in mind that your broker will hold your hand throughout this process to help decipher all of this information and keep it as simple as possible for you.
Disclaimer
This page provides general information only and has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Your full financial situation will need to be reviewed prior to acceptance of any offer or product. Subject to lenders’ credit criteria, terms and conditions as well as fees and charges. Information is correct as at the 6 March 2019.