Confused as to the number of grants and schemes available? Here’s a brief breakdown

First up, the Homebuilder Grant.

We mentioned the Homebuilder scheme recently as this is one of the schemes that the government has introduced to help people that plan on building or doing major renovations. As of writing this, all states have now signed off on the scheme and applications are being taken if you live in Tasmania, ACT and SA.

The key requirements will continue to be clarified as applications are open to the other states. To find out if you are eligible for the Homebuilder Grant head over to our blog – THE HOMEBUILDER GRANT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Next up, The First Home Owner Grant.

For the First Homeowner, The FHOG and FHO stamp duty concessions are 2 different schemes. The main confusion here is that the FHOG is only related to new buildings. Also, the FHOG gives you money, whereas the FHO stamp duty concession saves you from paying money.

So what is a New Home under the FHOG requirements?

A new home is either:

• a house, apartment, unit or townhouse that has never been
  • occupied as a place of residence
  • sold as a place of residence
• a substantially renovated home (completed by the seller in limited circumstances).

Renovation eligibility:

The home:

• must be substantially renovated before you buy it
• must not have been lived in since the renovation

Each state has a different offering so check where you are looking to buy. This can make a big difference for those of us on the border of 2 states. Tasmania has a build grant that is available to all for the purpose of building. 

And lastly, The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme

For the FHLDS, the new lot of places came out on July 1. Please note both NAB and CBA have waiting lists in place already and there are multiple smaller lenders that share in the other portion of spots available.

It’s a lot easier to get one of these, however, the lenders each have a different set of policies to meet. We have been successful in getting places with the smaller lenders and they can save a lot by securing a place. To be eligible for the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme, there are several criteria used to determine eligibility as a first home buyer under the Scheme.

You should consider whether your personal circumstances satisfy all of the following checks, including:

• an income test
• a prior property ownership test
• a minimum age test
• a deposit requirement, and
• an owner-occupier requirement.

While there is significant uncertainty in relation to employment, an increasing number of first home buyers who are confident about the future have decided the time is right to take advantage of government incentives, low interest rates and attractive housing prices.

If you are seeking more information on any of the above and want to gain more confidence in your decision, we are happy to chat. Contact us here