First Home Owner Grant Australia 2026: Every State

First Home Owner Grant by State and Territory (2026)

The grant ranges from nil to $50,000 across the 8 states and territories, and every one of them now limits it to new homes. Here's the comparison, from each government's own pages or legislation as read on October 29, 2026.

Western Australia and the Northern Territory both pay the lesser of the grant amount and what you actually paid. Western Australia also says only one grant is paid per transaction, so a couple buying together gets one grant, not two.

Deadlines that matter right now. Tasmania's grant dropped from $30,000 to $20,000 for transactions from July 1, 2026, and its current amount runs to June 30, 2027. The Northern Territory's $50,000 applies to transactions that start before October 1, 2027; under the Act, the amount then falls to $10,000. Western Australia raised its southern cap from $750,000 to $800,000 for transactions from May 7, 2026.

Who Qualifies Across Australia

The core rules are close to identical across the 7 states and territories that still pay a grant, because they all grew out of the same national scheme. According to the State Revenue Office Victoria, and repeated almost word for word in Queensland and New South Wales, you must:

• be a natural person (not a company or trust) aged 18 or over;
• have at least one applicant who's an Australian citizen or permanent resident;
• not have received a First Home Owner Grant before anywhere in Australia (you or your spouse or partner);
• not have owned residential property in Australia before July 1, 2000, or owned and lived in one for 6 continuous months or more since then; and
• live in the new home as your principal place of residence, starting within 12 months of settlement or the build finishing.

Your partner counts even if they're not on the title. Victoria tells applicants to include a spouse's or partner's details and answer the eligibility questions for them too. If your partner owned and lived in a home before, you're usually out.

An investment property doesn't always rule you out. Queensland and Victoria both say you may still qualify if you've owned a property since July 1, 2000 but never lived in it. Expect to prove it with leases and tax returns.

New Zealand citizens. Victoria says that for settlements from November 26, 2025, New Zealand citizens can apply whether or not they hold a special category visa. Queensland's page still describes the special category visa rule, so check your own state.

No income test. Queensland says income has no bearing on eligibility, and Western Australia says there are no income or assets tests.

What counts as new. A new home is one that hasn't been lived in, leased or sold as a home before. That includes off-the-plan apartments, house-and-land packages, owner-builder homes and, in most states, substantially renovated homes sold for the first time. Queensland and New South Wales both say there's no grant for established homes.

What 120,528 First Home Buyer Loans Show by State

The ABS counts every owner-occupier home loan commitment to first home buyers, and its June quarter 2026 data gives a fair picture of where first homes are being bought. Grantsights analysis of the ABS Lending Indicators series, adding up the four quarters from July 2025 to June 2026, found:

Data: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Lending Indicators, owner-occupier first home buyer new loan commitments for housing (excluding refinancing), all lenders, original series, July 2025 to June 2026 compared with July 2024 to June 2025. Downloaded October 29, 2026 from the ABS Data API. These are loans for all first homes, new and established, so they're not grant counts.

Three findings matter for buyers:

New South Wales' cap is below its average loan. The average NSW first home buyer loan, $676,742, is already above NSW's $600,000 cap for buying a new home, before you add the deposit. In practice, the NSW grant is likely to reach mainly apartments, smaller homes and house-and-land builds under $750,000. If you're buying in Sydney, check the price before you count on the money.

Average loans grew faster than most caps. The national average loan rose from $544,424 to $598,156 between the two 12-month periods. Western Australia's average loan grew from $502,958 to $583,656, and the state lifted its southern cap in May 2026. Caps that don't move squeeze more buyers out each year.

Bigger grants don't mean more grants. Tasmania's own statistics, drawn from the national FHOG online database, show grants paid fell from 881 in 2020-21 to 385 in 2025-26, even though most of those years paid $30,000. The grant only applies to new homes, so it's limited by how many new homes are built and sold in time.

Where Victoria's grants go. For example, Victoria received 1,181 applications from postcode 3029 (Hoppers Crossing, Tarneit and Truganina) alone in 2024-25, the most of any postcode in the State Revenue Office Victoria's statistics, followed by 3064 (Craigieburn, Mickleham and nearby suburbs) with 1,148 and 3978 (Clyde and Clyde North) with 887. These are growth-area suburbs on Melbourne's fringe, where house-and-land packages under $750,000 still exist. The top regional postcode was 3217 (Armstrong Creek near Geelong) with 341.

Data: State Revenue Office Tasmania, First Home Owner Grant statistics as at September 30, 2026 (source: national FHOG online database), read October 29, 2026. Earlier years may be revised.

The 5% Deposit Scheme: a Guarantee, Not a Grant

The federal scheme is the biggest first home buyer program in Australia, and it doesn't pay you anything. According to Housing Australia, the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (formerly the Home Guarantee Scheme) has helped over 320,000 Australians since 2020. The government guarantees part of your loan, so an eligible first home buyer can buy with a 5% deposit, or a single parent or legal guardian with 2%, without paying lenders mortgage insurance.

From October 1, 2025, Housing Australia says the scheme has no income caps, no waiting list and unlimited places. It covers new and existing homes, and building on vacant land. You can't apply to Housing Australia directly: you apply through a participating lender as part of your home loan, and once pre-approved you have 90 days to sign a contract.

Price caps apply, and they're separate from the state grant caps. These are from Housing Australia's property price caps page (opens in a new tab) as read on October 29, 2026:

You can use both. Queensland's revenue office says the national schemes don't affect your eligibility for its grant, and Western Australia's page lists them as separate programs. The catch: a guarantee lowers your deposit, not your loan. With a 5% deposit you're borrowing 95% of the price and paying interest on it, so check the repayments before you use the full cap.

Other federal help. Housing Australia also runs Help to Buy, a shared equity scheme with 10,000 places a year: the government contributes up to 30% of the price for an existing home or 40% for a new one, and you need a deposit of at least 2%. Unlike the 5% Deposit Scheme, it has income limits ($103,000 for individuals and $165,000 for single parents and joint applicants, indexed each year), and applications opened on December 5, 2025. The ATO's First Home Super Saver Scheme lets you put up to $15,000 a year and $50,000 in total of voluntary super contributions towards a first home deposit. See Help to Buy on firsthomebuyers.gov.au (opens in a new tab) for the full rules.

How to Apply and When the Money Arrives

Applying takes 4 steps, and timing depends on whether you need the money at settlement.

1. Check the home qualifies before you sign. Confirm it's new, under your state's cap, and that you meet the ownership and residence rules. Queensland has an eligibility tester (opens in a new tab) on its eligibility page.
2. Apply through your lender if you need the money at settlement. Revenue NSW says that if you need the grant for settlement or the first progress payment, you must lodge with the approved agent providing your finance. Victoria says most people apply through an approved agent such as a bank or credit union.
3. Or apply directly afterwards. Revenue NSW and the State Revenue Office Victoria both accept direct applications within 12 months of settlement or of the build being finished. You'll need identity documents, the contract and title details, and for a build, the occupancy certificate.
4. Move in and stay. Start living there within 12 months and stay for your state's minimum period. Revenue offices check: Victoria says it reviews council records, title details and your financial details, and that false information can lead to prosecution.

Building takes longer than buying. For a new build, the grant is usually paid at the first progress payment or when the home is ready for occupation. Tasmania's higher grants also require the home to be finished within 24 months of the building contract or of laying the foundations, and Grantsights checked that requirement against the State Revenue Office Tasmania's eligibility page.

Scams and Fake Grant Offers

First home buyer schemes attract scammers because buyers are expecting money from the government. Three facts from official sources protect you: the grant comes only from your state revenue office or its approved agent (your lender), Housing Australia doesn't take direct applications, and nobody legitimate charges a fee to "unlock" a grant.

• Fake revenue office emails and texts. The State Revenue Office Victoria warns it's seeing more phishing emails pretending to be from the SRO. It says real emails come from an sro.vic.gov.au address, real texts come from "SRO VIC", and scam messages often push you to act within 60 minutes or open a link asking for personal information. If you're unsure, it says to contact it on 13 21 61. Avoid clicking links in any unexpected message about your grant; go to your revenue office's site yourself. See its scams and staying safe online page (opens in a new tab).
• Anyone selling access to the 5% Deposit Scheme. According to Housing Australia, you can only apply through a participating lender as part of a home loan. A broker can help, but a stranger offering a "guaranteed place" for a fee is a red flag; since October 2025 there's no waiting list to jump.
• Changed bank details at settlement. Settlement involves large transfers, so treat any email that changes payment details as suspect. Confirm bank details by phone with your conveyancer using a number you already have, never one from the email.
• Report it. Use Scamwatch (opens in a new tab), the ACCC's scam reporting service, and contact your bank straight away if you've sent money.

What the Revenue Offices Don't Tell You

The official pages are clear about the rules. They're quieter about which buyers the grant actually helps, and the data above fills some of that gap.

The grant follows new supply, not need. Because only new homes qualify, the grant mostly lands in outer suburbs with house-and-land estates and in new apartment buildings. Victoria's top postcodes are all growth areas. If you want an established home in an inner suburb, the grant won't help, and a stamp duty concession is often worth more; Victoria, for example, lists duty savings for first home buyers on homes up to $750,000.

A higher grant can push you towards a worse deal. A builder who knows you're getting $30,000 in Queensland or $50,000 in the Northern Territory may price that in. Compare the total package against similar homes before you sign. Don't let the grant decide the purchase.

Contract dates decide the amount, not settlement. Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory all tie the amount or cap to when the contract was signed or construction started. A common mistake is assuming a later settlement date gets a newer, higher amount. Check which date your state uses.

Your partner's history can sink a joint application. It's easy to underestimate this one. If your spouse or de facto partner has owned and lived in a home, or received a grant, you're usually ineligible even if they aren't buying with you.

You'll repay it if plans change. Moving out early, renting the home out instead of living in it, or a sale that falls through all trigger repayment obligations. Victoria says you must tell it within 14 days and repay; other states have similar rules, and penalties and interest can apply. Clawback rules are common in other countries' household grants too: an owner's Disabled Facilities Grant in England can carry a charge on the home for 10 years.

Other Countries' Household Grant Guides

If you're comparing Australia's support with other countries, Grantsights also covers household schemes in the UK and Ireland. In the UK, the Disabled Facilities Grant pays for home adaptations through councils, the ECO4 scheme funds insulation and heating upgrades through energy suppliers, and the Warm Home Discount takes money off winter electricity bills. In Ireland, home energy upgrade grants are covered in our SEAI grants guide.

Sources Checked

All sources were read or downloaded on October 29, 2026:

• Revenue NSW, First Home Owner (New Homes) Grant (opens in a new tab)
• State Revenue Office Victoria, Understanding the First Home Owner Grant (opens in a new tab) (updated September 29, 2026) and First Home Owner Grant 2024-25 statistics (opens in a new tab) (data as at November 28, 2025)
• Queensland Revenue Office, First home owner grant (opens in a new tab) and eligibility criteria (opens in a new tab) (last updated August 5, 2026)
• Government of Western Australia, First home owner grant (opens in a new tab) and About the first home owner grant (opens in a new tab) (updated July 29, 2026)
• RevenueSA, First home buyer page (opens in a new tab) (grant of up to $15,000; no value cap for contracts from June 6, 2024), read October 29, 2026
• State Revenue Office Tasmania, First Home Owner Grant eligibility (opens in a new tab) and First Home Owner Grant statistics (opens in a new tab) (as at September 30, 2026)
• Northern Territory Legislation, First Home Owner Grant Act 2000 (opens in a new tab), as in force at July 1, 2026, section 18
• ACT Legislation Register, First Home Owner Grant (Amount) Determination 2019 (No 1), DI2019-138 (opens in a new tab)
• Housing Australia, Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme (opens in a new tab) and property price caps (opens in a new tab)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics, Lending Indicators (opens in a new tab), housing finance data via the ABS Data API (dataflow LEND_HOUSING), June quarter 2026