First home buyer in WA: nil duty to $500,000 and the $10,000 grant

If you are buying your first home in Western Australia, the single largest saving is on transfer duty (WA's name for stamp duty). An eligible first home buyer pays no duty at all on a home valued up to $500,000, and a flat concessional rate between $500,000 and a $700,000 cap. On top of that, a new home can attract a $10,000 First Home Owner Grant. This guide sets out exactly what you get, with every figure computed from the current RevenueWA rates, and explains why a widely reported threshold increase does not yet apply to your purchase.

The $500,000 full duty exemption

The centrepiece of WA's first home buyer support is the first home owner rate (FHOR) of transfer duty. If you are an eligible first home buyer and your established or new home in the metropolitan or Peel region is valued at $500,000 or less, you pay no transfer duty at all. That is not a discount off a smaller bill, it is the whole duty removed, which on a home near the top of that range is close to $18,000 kept in your pocket compared with the general rate.

It is administered by RevenueWA, which confirms a first home buyer pays no duty on a home valued up to $500,000 in the metro or Peel region. A lower non-metro/Peel rate and higher cap ($750,000) applies to regional buyers, not covered in detail here.

The $500,000 to $700,000 concessional rate

Above $500,000 the benefit does not disappear at once, but it works differently from Victoria's sliding concession. Between $500,001 and $700,000 an eligible first home buyer pays duty of 13.63% of the amount over $500,000 only, not a percentage of the whole price. At $700,000 and above, the FHOR no longer applies at all, and you pay the full general rate on the entire price.

This is a flat marginal rate, not a taper: unlike Victoria's first home buyer concession, which scales smoothly from near-zero to full duty over a $150,000 band, WA applies the same 13.63% rate to every dollar between $500,000 and $700,000. The rate happens to be calibrated so that duty converges to almost exactly the general rate right at the $700,000 cap (see the worked examples below), which softens what would otherwise be a sharp jump at the boundary, but crossing $700,000 still means losing the concession on the whole price, not just the amount above it.

Worked examples: established or new home

Each first home owner figure below is computed from the current RevenueWA rates (verified 15 July 2026), shown against the standard (non first home buyer) duty at the same price so you can see the saving:

Duty computed from the RevenueWA transfer duty general rate and the first home owner rate thresholds ($500,000 nil duty, $700,000 cap, metro/Peel), verified 15 July 2026. Estimate only. Use the official RevenueWA calculator for a precise figure. For the full general rate table and a calculator, see the transfer duty WA guide.

Vacant land: nil duty to $350,000

If you are buying vacant land to build your first home on, the same shape of concession applies at lower thresholds: no duty at all up to $350,000, then 15.39% of the amount over $350,000 up to a $450,000 cap. Above $450,000, ordinary transfer duty applies to the whole price.

At the $450,000 land cap the first home owner duty ($15,390) matches the general rate ($15,390) exactly, so there is no cliff at all on vacant land, the concession simply runs out smoothly right at the cap.

Is the $600,000 threshold in effect yet?

You may have seen reports of a higher $600,000 nil-duty threshold and $800,000 cap. These come from a 2026-27 State Budget measure announced 7 May 2026, but as at 15 July 2026, RevenueWA's own transfer duty assessment page confirms the change has not yet commenced: it requires legislation and a RevenueWA system update, described as "subject to the Parliamentary process", with commencement estimated for late July 2026. Until it actually commences, the $500,000/$700,000 (home) and $350,000/$450,000 (land) thresholds used throughout this page are the ones that apply to your purchase. A related but separate change, an increase to the First Home Owner Grant property value cap to $800,000 south of the 26th parallel, has already commenced from 7 May 2026; do not confuse the two schemes.

The $10,000 First Home Owner Grant

Separate from the duty concession is a cash grant. The $10,000 First Home Owner Grant (new homes only) is paid by RevenueWA to eligible first home buyers who buy or substantially renovate a new home. Its conditions are narrower than the duty concession: new home (or substantially renovated home) purchases; not available for established homes. Property value cap $800,000 south of the 26th parallel of south latitude (all Perth metropolitan areas) for transactions from 7 May 2026, or $1,000,000 north of the 26th parallel. No income or asset test.

The key distinction is new versus established. The FHOR duty concession above applies to an established (previously lived in) home as well as a new one, but the grant does not: it is for a new or substantially renovated home only. If you are buying an existing house, you can still get the FHOR duty concession, but not the grant. Full conditions are on the RevenueWA First Home Owner Grant page.

Deposit and shared-equity schemes

The savings above are WA rules on duty and the state grant. Two of the most-asked-about first home buyer supports are federal, not part of WA's duty system, so this guide does not quote their figures (income and property price caps change, and they are set nationally, not by WA):

• The First Home Guarantee (the Australian Government low-deposit scheme) lets eligible buyers purchase with a smaller deposit without paying lenders mortgage insurance. Property price caps and eligibility are set federally and change, so check the current details at the official Australian Government first home buyers site rather than relying on a figure quoted elsewhere.
• WA also runs its own state-based shared-equity home loan through Keystart, a state government lender, which is a separate program from the duty concession on this page and has its own income and eligibility tests.

Who counts as a first home buyer

The FHOR concession and the grant each have their own eligibility rules, but the core first home buyer test in WA, per RevenueWA, is broadly:

• You (and any co-buyer relying on the benefit) have not previously owned residential property anywhere in Australia.
• You are an individual, not a company or most trusts.
• You intend to live in the property as your principal place of residence.

Eligibility can turn on details, for example buying with a partner who has owned before, or trusts and companies, that this general guide cannot resolve for your situation. Confirm your own eligibility with RevenueWA or your settlement agent before you make an offer.

How to claim

You do not usually apply for the FHOR duty concession separately. Your settlement agent lodges the claim as part of the duty assessment at settlement, and you sign a declaration confirming you meet the eligibility criteria. The First Home Owner Grant for a new home is applied for through RevenueWA, often via your lender. Getting a settlement agent engaged early, ideally before you make an offer, means the concession and any grant are handled correctly the first time and reflected in your settlement figures.

Conveyancing Explained provides general information about property transactions in Australia. It is not legal advice and does not create a client relationship. For advice on your situation, engage a licensed conveyancer, settlement agent, or property solicitor in your state or territory.