First home buyer grant, what you need to know

There are different concessions available to first home buyers and this week I want to take a closer look at the very popular First Home Buyers Grant, starting with why the Government established it.

The Government was looking for ways to not only assist first home buyers get into the market but also increase housing, stimulate the economy and establish/keep jobs in the Building industry and as you can appreciate the way they can do this is by offering the grant to First home Buyers that are purchasing a brand new home. I have been asked why the grant isn’t for first home buyers purchasing an existing house and as you can see, if the Government offered it to all first home buyers it wouldn’t benefit all four areas the Government is focusing on.

The first home buyers concessions vary from state to state so if you want to see what your state is specifically offering you can visit here

Given that most of my clients (and I) are based in QLD it seems only fitting to take you through the QLD Great Start Grant as an example. At the moment the Great start grant pays eligible first home buyers $20,000.00 when they buy or build a brand new property.

**Please note this is due to decrease for all contracts signed after June 30 2017

We’ve talked about how the Government benefits so what about you, the First Home Buyer?

You will receive a lump sum that you can use towards whatever you like, you can put it towards your deposit so you borrow less, you can use it to offset your loan all the while knowing you have some savings available should an unexpected bill arise or you can even you it towards buying furniture for your new home.

To be eligible for the First Home Buyers Grant you need to be,
You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident (or applying with someone who is).
You or your spouse must not have previously owned property in Australia.
You must be at least 18 years of age.
You must be buying or building a brand new home, valued under $750,000.

there the Lender will submit the application on your behalf or you can submit the documents after settlement for yourself. Typically when the Lender applies for you the payment is much faster than when you apply yourself.

There are also Stamp duty concessions for First home buyers depending on how much you are spending so if you would like to know more stay tuned for next week.

As always if you have any questions at all please don’t hesitate to email me at maryanne@360mortgagesolutions.com.au. To get your free Home buyers guide make sure you subscribe to my mailing list at the top of the page.