Great news for first home buyers in NSW. Under the First Home Buyer Assistance scheme, savings on stamp duty are available to first home owners no matter whether you buy a new or established home.
From 1 August 2020, the NSW government has announced that stamp duty will not be applicable to first home buyers for new properties valued up to $800,000 and vacant land valued up to $400,000. Additionally, a concessional rate of duty will apply to homes valued more than $800,000 but less than $1,000,000 and vacant blocks of land valued more than $400,000 and less than $500,000. This stamp duty exemption will be in place for 12 months to 31 July 2021.
From 1 August 2021 the stamp duty exemptions will revert back to $650,000 for homes and $350,000 for land.
You can still be entitled to savings on stamp duty even if you pay between $650,000 and $800,000 for your first home. The cost of duty rises on a sliding scale. For example, if you pay $700,000, you’ll pay stamp duty of $10,402.33 – a saving of $16,304.67. If your first home costs $795,000, the stamp duty cost will be $30,166.77, providing a saving of $815.23.
Stamp duty savings for first home owners from 1 August 2021
Property type
|
Purchase price
|
Stamp duty amount for eligible first home buyers
|
Stamp duty savings
|
Vacant land
|
$350,000
|
$0
|
$10,957.00
|
$400,000
|
$7,728.50
|
$5,478.50
|
$450,000
|
$15,457.00
|
$0.00
|
New & Existing home
|
$650,000
|
$0
|
$22,207
|
$700,000
|
$10,402.33
|
$16,304.67
|
$800,000
|
$31,207
|
$0.00
|
Source: Revenue NSW
June 2021 Update
Introduced in the 2020-21 Budget, the NSW Government announced a proposal to change the way the current tax system is set up when purchasing properties. This proposal involves giving property buyers the choice to pay stamp duty (and any existing land tax, where applicable) as per the current process, or alternatively elect to pay a smaller annual property tax.
Read more about the NSW Government’s plan to scrap stamp duty and replace it with land tax.