First Home Buyer Grants NSW: Your 2026 Eligibility Guide
Buying a first property in New South Wales gets confusing fast once grants, price caps and occupancy rules enter the picture. The First Home Owner Grant is a $10,000 payment from the NSW Government, and it is narrower than most people expect. It applies to new homes only, it has a hard price cap, and getting a detail wrong can mean repaying the whole thing.
This guide covers who qualifies, which properties count, the occupancy rule that changed on 1 July 2023, how to apply, and what else you can claim alongside it. If you are new to the country as well as to buying, our guide for migrant first home buyers covers the ground before this one. If you are buying an established home, there is still help available, just not this grant.
Key takeaways
- The grant is $10,000, for new or substantially renovated homes under $600,000, or $750,000 for land plus a building contract.
- Established homes do not qualify for the grant. They can still qualify for transfer duty relief under a separate scheme.
- The ownership test has two limbs, and most summaries only state one of them.
- For contracts signed on or after 1 July 2023 you must live in the home for 12 continuous months, up from six.
- Temporary residents are not eligible. At least one applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
What the First Home Owner Grant Is
The First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant is a one-off $10,000 payment from the NSW Government toward buying or building a first home. The word that does the work is new. The property must never have been lived in, or must have been substantially renovated. Houses, townhouses, apartments, units and similar self-contained dwellings all qualify, provided they meet that test.
A near-new house bought from a previous owner will not qualify, however briefly they lived there. This catches more applicants than any other rule.
| What you are buying | Price cap | How the cap is measured |
|---|---|---|
| New or substantially renovated home | $600,000 | Purchase price |
| Vacant land plus a building contract | $750,000 | Land, the building contract and all variations combined |
Variations count toward the $750,000
If you are building, the cap covers the land, the contract and every variation added along the way. A build that starts comfortably under the cap can cross it through upgrades during construction, and the grant goes with it. Our guide to how construction loans work covers how variations are handled and why they need watching.
Who Is Eligible
The basics are straightforward. Every applicant must be at least 18 and apply as an individual rather than through a company or trust, and at least one applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident. Temporary residents are not eligible.
The ownership test has two parts
Most summaries state only half of this rule
You, your spouse or partner, and any co-purchaser must not have:
- owned residential property in Australia before 1 July 2000, or
- owned and lived in a residential property in Australia for six continuous months or more on or after 1 July 2000.
The second limb is the one that gets left out, and it cuts both ways. If you bought an Australian property after 1 July 2000 but never lived in it for six continuous months, you may still be eligible. An investment property held since 2000 and never occupied does not automatically disqualify you.
It applies to everyone on the application. One partner's history can disqualify the whole claim, so check both before you plan around the money.
Other situations worth knowing
Property owned overseas does not affect eligibility. The test refers to residential property in Australia.
An inherited home never qualifies for the grant. You must be the buyer or the builder, not the recipient.
You cannot have received a First Home Owner Grant before, in any state or territory, and neither can your spouse.
Australian Defence Force members may be exempt from the residence requirement, provided every buyer is on the NSW electoral roll.
The Occupancy Rule That Changed in 2023
You must move into the home as your principal place of residence within 12 months of settlement or completed construction. How long you then have to stay depends on when you signed.
| Contract signed | Move in within | Minimum continuous occupancy |
|---|---|---|
| Before 1 July 2023 | 12 months | 6 months |
| On or after 1 July 2023 | 12 months | 12 months |
Leave early and the grant is repayable in full. Revenue NSW can also charge interest and penalty tax on top. If your circumstances change mid-way, a work transfer or a relationship breakdown, contact Revenue NSW rather than waiting to be found. Telling them first is a materially better position than being assessed later.
How to Apply
There are two routes, and which one you use depends on timing.
Through an approved agent, if you need the money at settlement
Approved agents are banks and financial institutions. If you need the grant to go toward settlement, or toward the first progress payment on a build, your lender lodges the application on your behalf as part of the loan.
Through the Revenue NSW customer portal, if you have already settled
If the purchase or build is complete, you apply directly through the portal. You have 12 months from settlement or completion to lodge.
Get the paperwork together first
Proof of identity, the signed contract for sale or building contract, a title search, and vendor confirmation that the property has never been occupied since it was built or renovated. If you are still building the deposit, our saving goal calculator helps set the target.
Where a broker fits in
Approved agent status sits with lenders, not brokers. What we do is check your eligibility against the rules before you commit to a contract, pick a lender whose process gets the grant to settlement on time, make sure the application goes in with your loan rather than after it, and line the grant up with the duty concessions and federal schemes you may also qualify for.
Missing or inconsistent documents are the usual reason an application stalls, and a stalled grant at settlement is a cash problem on the day. What a mortgage broker does covers the rest of the role, and there are reasons most first home buyers now use one.
What You Can Claim Alongside It
The grant is rarely the biggest number. Transfer duty relief is usually worth more, and it is available on established homes too.
| Support | What you get | New homes only? |
|---|---|---|
| First Home Owner Grant | $10,000 cash | Yes |
| First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme | Full transfer duty exemption up to $800,000, concession from $800,000 to $1 million | No, established homes qualify |
| First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, vacant land | Full exemption up to $350,000, concession to $450,000 | Land |
| First Home Guarantee, federal | Buy with a 5% deposit and no LMI | No |
The duty exemption is often the larger saving of the two. Run your purchase price through our stamp duty calculator to see what it is worth in your case, because on a purchase near the cap it comfortably exceeds the grant. The property buying cost calculator totals the rest of the upfront costs alongside it.
The federal First Home Guarantee stacks on top. Since 1 October 2025 it has no income caps and no limit on places, letting eligible buyers purchase with a 5 per cent deposit and no lenders mortgage insurance. In NSW the property price cap is $1,500,000 for Sydney, the Illawarra, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, and $800,000 elsewhere in the state. Note those caps are well above the $600,000 FHOG cap, so plenty of buyers will qualify for the guarantee and not the grant.
Buying established in NSW?
You miss the $10,000 grant, but you can still claim the duty exemption under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme and use the First Home Guarantee. For many buyers in Sydney the combination is worth more than the grant would have been, because the grant's $600,000 cap rules out most of the market anyway.
Where Applications Go Wrong
- Assuming a near-new home counts. If anyone has lived in it since it was built, it is established. Get written confirmation from the vendor before you rely on the grant.
- Only checking one applicant's history. A partner who owned and occupied a property after 1 July 2000 disqualifies the whole application.
- Letting variations push a build over $750,000. The cap covers land, contract and variations together.
- Budgeting the grant into the deposit without confirming the lodgement route. If it is coming at settlement it has to go through your lender, as part of the loan.
- Moving out before 12 months. Renting the spare room is fine. Moving out and renting the house is not.
- Missing the 12 month lodgement window when applying after settlement through the portal.
The Takeaway
The First Home Owner Grant gives $10,000 toward a new or substantially renovated home under $600,000, or $750,000 for land plus a building contract. It is narrow, and in much of Sydney the price cap rules it out entirely. That is worth knowing early rather than late.
The broader support is wider than the grant. Transfer duty relief runs to $800,000 and covers established homes, and the federal First Home Guarantee goes to $1.5 million in Sydney with a 5 per cent deposit. Before you set a budget, work out which of the three you actually qualify for, because they change what you can afford by very different amounts. Our first home deposit guide and borrowing power calculator are a reasonable place to start, and the house deposit guide goes deeper on what lenders count.
Find out which NSW schemes you actually qualify for
Everest Home Loans works with first home buyers across Sydney and regional New South Wales, as a mortgage broker in Sydney and remotely across the state. We will check your eligibility against the rules before you sign a contract, not after.
Book a free consultation Call 0431 790 889- Check both applicants against the two limb ownership test before you commit
- Work out whether the grant, the duty exemption or the First Home Guarantee is worth most to you
- Pick a lender whose process gets the grant to settlement on time
- Compare more than 40 lenders on rate and on first home buyer policy
- Get a pre-approval in place before you start making offers
- Talk it through in English, Nepali or Hindi
Email: raj@everesthomeloans.com.au
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get the First Home Owner Grant if I buy an established home in NSW?
No. The grant applies only to new homes and substantially renovated homes, never to an established home bought on the resale market.
You may still qualify for transfer duty relief under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, which does cover established homes, with a full exemption up to $800,000 and a concession from $800,000 to $1 million. The federal First Home Guarantee is also available on established property.
Can couples buying together each claim a separate grant?
No. One $10,000 grant is paid per property, however many buyers are on the title. Joint applicants receive a single combined payment, so budget for one grant rather than two.
Both of you also have to pass the eligibility tests. One partner's prior ownership disqualifies the application entirely.
I owned an investment property after 2000 but never lived in it. Am I eligible?
Possibly. The test is whether you owned residential property in Australia before 1 July 2000, or owned and lived in one for six continuous months or more on or after that date. An investment property held since 2000 and never occupied for six continuous months may not disqualify you.
This is the limb most summaries omit, and it is worth confirming against your own circumstances rather than assuming either way.
What happens if I do not meet the occupancy requirement?
You repay the grant in full. For contracts signed on or after 1 July 2023 the requirement is 12 continuous months, up from six, after moving in within 12 months of settlement. Revenue NSW can also apply interest and penalty tax.
If your circumstances change part way through, contact Revenue NSW yourself rather than waiting. Disclosing early puts you in a materially better position than being assessed afterwards.
Can I combine the grant with other schemes?
Yes. The grant sits alongside transfer duty exemptions and concessions under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, and alongside the federal First Home Guarantee, which since 1 October 2025 has no income caps and no limit on places.
What each is worth depends on your purchase price and property type, and the thresholds differ. The grant stops at $600,000, duty relief runs to $1 million, and the First Home Guarantee reaches $1.5 million in Sydney. Worth mapping all three before you set a budget.
Is a mortgage broker an approved agent for the grant?
No. Approved agent status sits with banks and financial institutions, which is why the application goes through your lender when you need the grant at settlement.
A broker's role is to confirm your eligibility before you sign, choose a lender whose process delivers the grant on time, and make sure the application is lodged with the loan rather than left until afterwards.
Does the $750,000 cap include upgrades to my build?
Yes. For land plus a building contract, the cap covers the land, the building contract and all variations combined. Upgrades chosen during construction count toward it.
A build that sits under the cap at signing can cross it through variations, and the grant is lost with it. Track the running total against the cap rather than against the original contract price.
Sources
- Revenue NSW, First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant. Grant amount, price caps, eligibility and the two limb ownership test, residence requirements before and after 1 July 2023, approved agent and customer portal lodgement.
- Revenue NSW, First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme. Transfer duty exemption and concession thresholds for homes and vacant land.
- Housing Australia, First Home Guarantee. Scheme settings from 1 October 2025 and NSW property price caps.
This article is general information only and does not take your objectives, financial situation or needs into account. Grant amounts, price caps, duty thresholds and scheme settings change, and the figures quoted were current at the date of publication. Eligibility for the First Home Owner Grant is determined by Revenue NSW, not by Everest Home Loans. Confirm your own position with Revenue NSW or seek your own advice before acting. Kandel & Co Pty Ltd trading as Everest Home Loans, ACR 506833. Rajesh Kandel, Authorised Credit Representative 476341 of Connective Credit Services Pty Ltd, ABN 77 161 731 111, Australian Credit Licence 389328.
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Kandel & Co Pty Ltd t/a Everest Home Loans is an Authorised Credit Representative – 506833, and Rajesh Kandel is an Authorised Credit Representative number – 476341 of Connective Credit Services Pty Ltd ABN 77 161 731 111 (Australian Credit Licence No.389328).
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