The HomeBuilder Grant
The federal government’s HomeBuilder grant will provide $25,000 for Australian citizens (not permanent residents) building a new home or making a substantial renovation to an existing home.
The grant is designed to stimulate the Australian economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and recession. But while generous, there are eligibility criteria relating to both the size of the renovation, the value of the property and your income, which mean that not every homeowner or builder will qualify.
Here’s what you need to know.
Who is eligible for a HomeBuilder grant?
The HomeBuilder grant will provide a $25,000 cash grant to Australian citizens (not residents) who meet the following criteria:
Use of the grant. You can use a HomeBuilder grant to construct a new home or renovate an existing home. It cannot be used for investment properties.
Citizenship. HomeBuilder is only offered to Australian citizens, not permanent residents.
Income. A single builder or homeowner must be earning $125,000 a year or less. If a couple, your combined income in the last tax year must be $200,000 or less.
Value of the property. If you’re using the grant to cover the construction of a new home, the value of the home and land combined must not exceed $750,000. If you’re using the grant to cover renovation costs, the value of your property (before the renovation) must be $1.5 million or lower.
Renovation cost. The cost of your renovation must be between $150,000 and $750,000.
Time frame. Any building or renovation contract must be completed between 4 June and 31 December 2020 and construction must commence within 3 months of signing the contract. Current building projects will not qualify for the grant.
No owner-builders. You cannot use the grant if you’re undertaking your own improvements or construction. You will need to hire licensed builders.
Exclusions. Some renovations are not covered by the grant, including adding a pool, tennis court or detached garage. Bathroom and kitchen renovations are covered.
While HomeBuilder is a federal scheme, it will be administered through state and territory governments.
How helpful is HomeBuilder?
At $25,000, HomeBuilder is a generous cash grant, but you have to look very closely at your income, your property’s value and your construction or renovation plans to see if it can actually help you.
If you were planning on building a home within the value limits ($750,000), then HomeBuilder is definitely a win for you. As long as the timing works out.
The eligibility criteria for renovations are quite narrow, and won’t cover a lot of people, especially those doing small renovations ($150,000 as a minimum effectively rules out any small renovations, such as retiling, window replacement or new carpet).
A lot of homeowners looking to make small improvements to their home won’t qualify.
Understandably, industry groups have been quick to praise the scheme.
“The HomeBuilder incentive is the largest direct contribution to owner-occupier housing construction that an Australian government has ever made,” said HIA Managing Director Graham Wolfe. “This incentive will help to address the projected decline in housing activity over the next 12 months.”
“The federal government’s HomeBuilder scheme will be a welcome shot-in-the-arm for the construction section over the next six months,” said Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) chairman Peter Koulizos.
“The restricted timeframe of the scheme as well as the requirement for projects to begin within three months of the contract date will also help to prevent profiteering from unscrupulous operators.”
I’m not eligible for HomeBuilder: What other support is available?
HomeBuilder is available for first home buyers and existing homeowners, but eligibility is quite restricted. However, there are several support policies targeted at first home buyers that are worth looking into.
You may be eligible for some or all of the following:
First Home Owner grant. This grant for first home buyers varies in every state and territory, but typically provides first-time buyers with a cash grant if they’re building a new home (or in some cases, buying an existing home), depending on the property’s value.
Stamp duty concessions. Many first home buyers, even those who don’t qualify for a grant, may receive an exemption or discount on stamp duty. This is a big saving, as stamp duty is one of the biggest costs associated with a property purchase.
First home loan deposit scheme. This federal scheme allows first-time buyers to get a home loan with just a 5% deposit while avoiding the hefty lenders mortgage insurance that your lender normally charges when you have a small deposit. There are a limited number of places for this scheme.
First home super saver scheme. Through this superannuation scheme for first home buyers, you can make additional contributions to your super fund, then withdraw them to use as a deposit on your first home, with tax benefits for doing so.
Hey, First Home Buyers in NSW!
If you qualify, you are able to use the HomeBuilder grant in conjunction with the other government schemes already available to you so potentially you could benefit by up to $35,000.
On top of the new HomeBuilder grant of $25,000, NSW first-home buyers already have access to a $10,000 grant for new properties costing less than $600,000 and owner-builder/building contracts worth less than $700,000.
If you’re buying land to build a new home, the total price – including the land and home – must be no more than $750,000.
There is also no stamp duty payable on property under $650,000, or vacant land under $350,000, while properties between $650,000 to $800,000, or vacant land between $350,000 to $450,000 get discounted stamp duty.
That’s a saving of up to $24,740 on a $650,000 home.
If you’re in a position to take advantage of what’s on offer it’s a real game changer for you as it presents a great opportunity to enter the property market. Maybe sooner than you thought as saving this kind of money usually takes years!
What do we say?
Michael says: “At first glance the scheme seems to be a good stimulus package, possibly more geared to metropolitan areas as far as the renovation package goes.
However, $25,000 toward a new home is huge advantage if people are able to access it, especially new home buyers.
With interest rates at an all time low, if you are in a position to do be able to something, ring your broker today and work through the fine details. It’s a great opportunity.”
Jacob says: “With what the Government have put forward and the time frame they have allocated it is clear the Government is trying to target those who are almost ready to build.
Whilst there still is an opportunity for some people to buy land and build the time frame will mean people will need to move quickly for this to occur.
If the scheme had a longer time period, you would see it drive up land prices for building blocks and as such be of more benefit to developers rather than those looking to build.
This scheme has been targeted at those who have land and are thinking of building and those who are very close to potentially purchasing to build.”
Source: https://www.finder.com.au/homebuilder-grant
