First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant – key definitions and eligibility criteria
Understand the exact requirements and possible exemptions and see if you might be eligible for the First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant.
Eligibility
To be eligible for First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant, applicants must satisfy the requirements below.
Property requirements
The maximum property price for a newly built house, townhouse, apartment, unit or similar is $600,000.
For vacant land plus a comprehensive home building contract, the maximum is $750,000.
Purchasing requirements
All applicants
- Must be over 18*.
- Must be an individual (not a company or trust**).
- Must not have received the grant before.
- Must not have previously owned a home (before 1 July 2000). ***
Single applicants
- Must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
Joint applicants
- At least one of you must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
Exemptions
*The age requirement may be waived at the discretion of Revenue NSW.
**May be waived in specific circumstances, such as when a trustee is purchasing property for someone to whom they are the legal guardian.
***Applicants may still be eligible if they purchased a residential property after 1 July 2000 and didn’t live in it for more than six continuous months.
Residence requirement
Under this condition, you must occupy the hope as your principal place of residence. You will need to:
move into the property within 12 months, and
live in the property continuously for at least 12 months.
Exemption for permanent Australian Defence Force members
Current permanent members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) are exempt from the residence requirement if they are enrolled to vote in NSW.
For joint applications, only one of the applicants needs to be an ADF member to be eligible for the exemption.
Key definitions
It's a new home if no-one has lived in it before. It can be a house, townhouse, apartment, unit or similar that is newly built, purchased off the plan or substantially renovated.
False claims
There are substantial penalties for providing false or misleading information when applying for the grant. We regularly check applications for inaccuracies and compare the information provided with relevant data from other government agencies and businesses.
Objections and reviews
You can lodge an objection or request a review if you’re dissatisfied with a decision we’ve made regarding your application.