If you are looking for a home loan to buy your first home, you may have heard a lot about the First Home Owner Grant (FHOG). At Smartline Rockingham, we field a lot of questions about the FHOG and we have helped numerous homebuyers find their first homes in Rockingham, Baldivis and the surrounding area.

As you may or may not know, the FHOG varies from state to state. We would like to provide some basic information about the FHOG here in WA to help you in your decision-making process.

Established Home or New Home?

In WA, the FHOG is heavily weighted towards purchasing a new home. If you want to purchase an established home, the Government was providing you a FHOG of $3,000 until the May 2015 budget where the grant was cut to nil. The reason is that the FHOG is designed to stimulate the construction industry. This will help the economy and it will also provide more housing inventory as Australia continues to grow in population.

If you purchase a new home in WA, your FHOG will be $10,000. In addition, there is another account called the Home Buyers’ Assistance Account that will pay you $2,000 if your home costs less than $400,000. If your home costs more than $750,000, you are not eligible for the grant.

Stamp Duty Concession

In addition, your first home is eligible for a stamp duty concession. If you are eligible for an FHOG, any established home under $530,000 or any vacant land under $400,000 is eligible for stamp duty concession.

When building a new home, there is no stamp duty on the building: only the land. If your vacant land is less than $300,000, you don’t have to pay any stamp duty. If it is between $300,000 and $400,000, you pay a percentage of the value over $300,000.

It pays to know your options. Call Smartline Rockingham today to learn more: (08) 9527 1800.