The ACT government has announced changes to the Home Buyer Concession Scheme in next week’s budget, increasing eligibility to the full stamp duty concession on the first $1 million of property value – a saving of  around $34,000 in tax.

The Budget expands the scheme from July 1 to:

• increase the income eligibility threshold to $250,000 a year for homebuyers who have not owned a property in the previous five years (up from $170,000 a year for homebuyers who have not owned a property in the previous two years)
• enable homebuyers to earn an additional $4600 per child and remain eligible (up from an additional $3330 a child)

People fleeing family violence will be exempt from the requirement to have not owned a property in the previous five years.

The government is also temporarily extending the stamp duty concession for off-the-plan unit purchases from July 1 to include properties valued up to $1 million in 2024-25.

Currently, homebuyers do not have to pay stamp duty on off-the-plan, unit-titled apartments and townhouses valued up to $800,000.

In October 2023, the government announced a new stamp duty exemption would apply to the first transfer of unit-titled dwellings on suburban residential (RZ1) blocks for purchases valued up to $800,000, from November 27 2023 to June 30 2026.

This coincided with the commencement of the new Territory Plan, which allows dual occupancy developments on large suburban residential blocks (over 800 square metres).

The 2024-25 Budget will temporarily extend the RZ1 Unit Duty Exemption Scheme to include properties valued up to $1 million in 2024-25, to align with the Off-The-Plan Unit Duty Exemption.

The government is extending the existing Disability Duty Concession Scheme (available to eligible homebuyers with a disability) from July 1 to provide a full stamp duty concession on the first $1 million of property value, to further support people with a long-term or permanent disability.

As a result, a partial concession is now available for properties over $1 million. Previously, the scheme was limited to properties valued up to $1 million.

The government is also introducing a new Severe Disability Duty Exemption from July 1 to support people with a severe disability and their carers to find a home.

This new exemption will exempt homes bought by people with severe disability or their carers from stamp duty if the home is their principal place of residence, without requiring the home to be bought by a Special Disability Trust.

The government has also extended the Pensioner Duty Concession Scheme from July 1 to provide a full stamp duty concession on the first $1 million of property value, supporting more pensioners to downsize. A partial concession will be available for properties over $1 million.

The existing scheme provides a full stamp duty concession for homes valued up to $550,000, with a decreasing concession to zero for homes valued between $550,000 and $765,000.