ACT Home Buyers Benefit from Government Assistance

AC T home buyers are set to benefit from today with the thresholds for duty concession assistance to increase, ACT Treasurer, Katy Gallagher MLA, said today.

From today (1 January 2010), the upper threshold for the home buyer duty concession scheme will increase to $422,000. For eligible home buyers, a house purchase up to $349,800 will attract duty of only $20.

“The duty concession thresholds are reviewed regularly to keep pace with changes in the market,” Ms Gallagher said.

“Schemes like this not only help home buyers but also the housing market more broadly by providing assistance to enable people to purchase a home and supporting market activity.”

The Treasurer said from 1 July 2009 to 30 November 2009, 1,788 ACT first home owners had received over $11.6 million in ACT first home owner grants and a further $14.3 million in the Australian Government first home owner boost. In addition, 1,185 home purchasers received $8.1 million in duty concessions.

“The first home owner grant and home buyer concession schemes together with other ACT Government affordable housing initiatives are assisting more home buyers and home owners than ever before,” Ms Gallagher said.

 In addition to first home owner grants and the duty concession, the Government also provides other forms of assistance to home buyers including:

• The Pensioner Duty Concession Scheme (PDCS) - assisting eligible pensioners to move to accommodation more suited to their needs (e.g. from a house to a townhouse).   Eligible pensioners are assisted to purchase a residential home or residential vacant land by paying duty at a concessional rate.
• Mortgage Relief Fund - administered by the ACT Revenue Office the fund provides repayable interest free loans to mortgagors who are experiencing short term mortgage stress due to an unforeseen change in their circumstances. This change includes loss of employment, sudden illness or injury within the last 12 months.
• Deferred Duty - Eligible persons who purchase an eligible property can elect to defer payment of the duty for up to 5 years.
• Land Rent - The Land Rent Scheme gives a lessee the option of renting land rather than purchasing the land outright. The advantage for potential lessees in taking up this option is the reduction of the up-front costs associated with owning a house. That is, lessees do not need to finance the cost of the land, only the costs associated with the transfer of the land and the construction of the home.

More information on these initiatives can be found on the ACT Revenue Office website at www.revenue.act.gov.au .

1 January 2010