Western Australia: stamp duty, FHB & settlement cash

Worked example: $550k FHB established (on the concession slope)

Eligible first-home owner-occupier, established, 20% deposit. Full exemption ends at $500,000. At $550,000 duty is a slice of standard duty at $700,000 — not zero, and not the east-coast $800k story.

Property value

$550,000

Stamp duty

$6,816

Government fees

$420

Funds to complete (20%)

$117,236

WA FHB sliding concession ($500k–$700k)

FHB $500k exemption, $700k full rates

Eligible WA first-home buyers pay $0 duty at or below $500,000. Between $500,001 and $700,000 duty scales to full standard at $700,000. Above $700,000 the standard table applies with no FHB discount.

Those caps are lower than NSW ($800k / $1m) and QLD established ($700k / $800k). Importing an east-coast FHB price into Perth is how people underfund duty.

Grant vs duty on established vs new

FHOG is modelled at $10,000 for new homes (south of the 26th parallel ≤ $750,000; north ≤ $1,000,000). Established homes: grant = $0 in the engine. Duty still exists on both paths.

The WA established-vs-new scenario exists because buyers treat “first home” as a grant. It is not. Confirm administering rules for the contract date; boosts expire.

Scheme and north-of-26th

5% Scheme caps: $850,000 metro, $600,000 regional. North-of-26th grant caps are not Scheme caps — do not mix the two maps.

Living-in and prior ownership still gate FHB and Scheme. RevenueWA standard rates apply once FHB is off the table.

WA traps

Model established with grant = $0 as the honest base. If new-build later shows a grant, treat it as conditional until confirmed.

• Using NSW or QLD FHB dollar caps on a WA offer
• Spending a new-home grant in your head on an established contract
• Confusing north-of-26th grant geography with Scheme metro/regional