Big changes to stamp duty aim to boost the property market and the construction industry. Picture: Sam Ruttyn
Sydneysiders looking to pick up their first property are set to benefit from huge changes to stamp duty.
The NSW Government has announced stamp duty will be temporarily scrapped for first home buyers purchasing newly-built properties worth up to $800,000 and heavily discounted for homes priced up to $1 million.
The year-long initiative aims to provide an economic boost to the construction sector and inject confidence into the struggling property market amid the coronavirus recession.
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Premier Gladys Berejiklian said more younger buyers will be able to secure a house under the scheme. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said changes to stamp duty thresholds will allow more buyers to buy their first home.
“Thousands of people will see their bank balances benefit from this change – it will help get more keys into more front doors of more new homes,” Ms Berejiklian said.
Commencing August 1, the threshold above which stamp duty will be charged on new homes for first home buyers will increase from the current $650,000 to $800,000, with the concession reducing on higher values before phasing out at $1 million.
The government forecasts more than 6000 first home buyers will benefit from the changes.
Under the changes the stamp duty threshold on vacant land will rise from $350,000 to $400,000 and will phase out at $500,000.
The changes will last for a 12-month period and will only apply to newly-built homes and vacant land, not to existing homes. Other purchases will continue to benefit from existing schemes.
First home buyers will also be able to access the $10,000 First Home Owner Grant, which is available to people buying a new first home worth no more than $600,000, or buying land and building a new first home worth no more than $750,000 in total.
The construction industry will also benefit. Picture: Rohan Kelly.
New homes up to $800,000 will be exempt from stamp duty. PICTURE: BRENDAN RADKE
This could see a first homebuyer save $32,335 under the scheme if purchasing a new home and accessing the grant.
Belle Property Annandale associate director Simone Azzi said the scheme is a welcomed boost for the property market and would provide more younger buyers a pathway to purchasing.
“Anything that can help first home buyers is a win, as it can be very hard for them,” she said.
“This will also relief the stress for many and could be the difference between buying a house instead of an apartment.”
First home buyers stand to be up to $32,335 better off under the program. Picture: Glenn Ferguson.
Tax breaks on existing homes — including the $650,000 stamp duty exemption will remain. Stamp duty exemptions on vacant land will also be increased, with the threshold rising to $400,000
The government hopes easing the burden of buying a newly built property will stimulate the construction sector, which employs around 376,000 workers in NSW.
Residential and commercial construction contributed $48 billion to the state’s economy in 2018-19.
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