clanwylie

I just read on an Oz house builders site "first time buyers government grant ending" does anyone know if this is true?

wengerboy

heard on triple m news a couple of weeks ago that the government had met to discuss changes to it making it only available to people who really needed it!ie not that well off! not sure of the outcome mind sorry

wengerboy

i think your safe for now
http://theage.com.au/news/NATIONAL/N...016793261.html

touchingcloth

Is one entitiled to this grant if they have just arrived from UK on a PR.
i.e is it a first time buyer in Oz grant?

How long do you have to have been in Oz for for this grant?

TC

Bordy

Yes you are entitled right away if on a PR.

touchingcloth

Hi

Wow that was a quick reply!!!!!!!

anyways...i just found this:

http://www.hsbc.com.au/personal/homeloans/first.html

are u sure? it says about citizens and some other acronym which i don't know what it means

TC

Bordy

We got $12,000 from them when we built while on PR, long before we became citizens.
The amount has changed now, I don't think its as much as $12,000 but you can get it if you are Permanent resident.

Bordy

http://www.firsthome.gov.au/

touchingcloth

Do they look into whether u owned a home in the UK?
or do u just not declare it?

Bordy

You can own 10 houses in UK, as long as this is your first home in Aus you are entitled to the grant.

brisnick

hopefully that's something that will change, along with making it means tested.

Centurion

Why is that then ? The amount of tax paid by us to the Australian government is a darn sight greater than that. Bear in mind that $7000 will not even cover your Stamp Duty - yes the huge amount of money paid to the government for the privilege of owning your own home in the first place for absolutely nothing in return.

In effect its just a rebate of some of that stamp duty paid, and even then certainly not all of it!!

Hardly a burden on the state now is it.

Vanessa

Would be nice to get something back. I can't believe the amount of stamp duty on a purchase in Victoria. On a $1,000,000 house they want $55,000 :scared:

Centurion

Yup - of course lets not forget we pay stamp duty on cars as well as other purchases as well! I think the home owners grant is the absolute least they can give back to help people buying their own home.

Wishing I could afford to pay the $1m for the house though because I dont think I would be that bothered about the loose change of $50k duty

brisnick

i'll tell you why. because as a genuine first home buyer i cannot afford to buy a house, so i'm forced to waste over $10,000 a year to rent.

people who have already owned properties and now have a huge amount of capital are the one's that have helped to push the australian market to the overinflated state it is in today, thus pushing prices beyond genuine first home buyers reaches.

so therefore by making the rules that you can't have owned property anywhere in the world it makes it fairer.

also, the fhog was there to enable genuine first home owners a bit of relief so that they could indeed get on the ladder. i just think it's wrong that someone who could maybe buy a house outright should also be given the grant. everything else here is means tested, so why not this. they may be able to raise the amount of the fhog if only those with a genuine need for it were given it.

under current rules, these people can claim, and i can't have a go at them for claiming it. i just think the rules should be so they can't.

imagine it a different way. you are living in the uk still, and either you, or your kids are struggling to get onto the housing ladder, but you/they can't afford to. but there's these americans with millions of pounds coming to the uk and pushing the house prices up, and claiming £10,000 back from the government. i think you'd definately want the laws changed.