The Federal Government HomeBuilder grant is a fantastic opportunity if you are thinking about renovating or building a new home.
You & Your Family
To be eligible to receive the grant you must:
- be an owner-occupier and intend on residing in the property for at least 6 months
- own the property as a natural person (not a company or trust)
- be aged 18 years or older
- be an Australian citizen
- not be an owner-builder
- not have received HomeBuilder for another property or for earlier works on your property.
In addition, your taxable income (based on your 2018-19 taxable income or later) is no more than:
- $125,000 per annum for an individual applicant; or
- $200,000 per annum for a couple.
The Contract
Your building contract must be entered into between 4 June 2020 and 31 December 2020 and must meet the following criteria:
- For the construction of a new home, where the property value does not exceed $750,000 (you cannot buy a recently constructed home or a spec home); or
- To substantially renovate your existing home, where:
- the renovation contract is between $150,000 and $750,000;
- the value of your existing property (house and land) does not exceed $1.5 million (pre-renovation);
- substantial renovations must improve the accessibility, safety or liveability of the main residence. Structures that are not connected to the main residence are not eligible – pools, granny flats, sheds or standalone garages.
- Construction must commence on or after 4 June and within three months of the contract date. Early indications suggest that even for an off-the-plan purchase construction cannot have commenced prior to June 4, 2020;
- The contract must be at arm’s length meaning if a relative or friend is undertaking the work for you:
- the contract terms must be commercially reasonable;
- the contract price is not inflated or special discounts applied.
Application Process
The application process has not been finalised but what we do know if that it will be administered by the State Government’s and the intention for payment is:
- New build payments will be made in line with first homeowners scheme payments (however the State has the discretion to amend this); and
- For renovations, the payments will be made once at least $150,000 has been spent.
Protecting Yourself
If you are looking at taking advantage of the HomeBuilder scheme, we recommend ensuring that your contract is subject to you successfully obtaining approval for the HomeBuilder grant. Talk to us. We would be happy to help.
