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From 1 July 2026, first home buyers (FHB) who meet the residency requirements in the capital territory will pay no stamp duty, regardless of their income or the value of the property they purchase.
The previous property value cap, which applied to homes under around $1 million, and the $250,000 household income threshold have both been removed, effectively opening the concession to all eligible owner-occupier FHBs.
The exemption applies to established and newly built homes, as well as vacant residential land in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), provided the buyer moves into the property and uses it as their principal place of residence for at least a year.
The territory has also broadened stamp duty relief beyond first home buyers, with those who have not owned property anywhere in Australia for five years now eligible for a concession.
Pensioners looking to downsize will no longer face a property price cap, while eligible NDIS participants will receive a full duty waiver. Owner-occupiers purchasing newly built or off-the-plan town houses and apartments will also pay no duty on eligible unit-titled properties.
A complex picture to begin with
However, brokers working in the territory have offered a mixed assessment on how this will affect first home buyer activity.
Mark Nocera, director and mortgage broker at Casa Mortgage Services, told Broker Daily that his brokerage had seen a “noticeable drop-off” in first home buyer enquiries since the announcement of the Federal Budget.
“Enquiry levels are currently lower than what we experienced following the introduction of the expanded 5 per cent deposit scheme in October, which had a much more noticeable impact on enquiry levels from first home buyers,” Nocera said.
“While there is still activity in the market, many prospective buyers appear to be taking a more cautious approach.”
Ashleigh Pakis, director of Panache Financial, said first home buyer demand in the ACT had largely held up, although she estimated activity may have softened by around 5–10 per cent.
“There has been more fear around buying, but ultimately, I feel like some first home buyers are – most of the people that work in the ACT are somehow reliant or a bit shielded because it is such a public service.
“So they don't have the fear that the general consumer has from a public, private enterprise system.”
Will stamp duty changes move the needle?
Despite the announced changes, Nocera said he did not expect the removal of stamp duty to materially increase first home buyer demand in the ACT, and that many of his FHB clients were already qualifying for concessions under previous settings.
“A large proportion of our first home buyer clients were purchasing under $1 million and had combined incomes within the applicable thresholds, so they were already receiving substantial assistance.
“For many buyers, this announcement doesn't significantly change their position.”
Overall, Nocera said that stamp duty had not historically been the primary barrier to home ownership in the territory.
“The bigger challenges continue to be serviceability, saving a deposit and finding a property that meets their needs within their borrowing capacity. Recent interest rate increases have reduced borrowing power for many buyers, which has had a more significant impact on purchasing decisions than stamp duty costs.
“For many first home buyers, the ability to borrow enough to purchase a suitable property remains the key issue.”
Dominion Finance director Suzanne O’Connor said, however, that said she expected the changes to lift demand and had already seen clients looking to take advantage of the expanded exemption in the first week of the scheme.
She said the removal of the previous income and property price caps could be particularly significant in Canberra, where she often works with higher-income first home buyers who would previously have fallen outside the concession thresholds.
“Canberra has clients with high incomes so if there is a couple and their joint income is now over $250,000 and if they are looking at properties over $1 million, they are now exempt from paying,” she said.
“We often see first home buyers in this position in Canberra, and they will now be able to save a significant amount and get in sooner.”
Buyers could rethink where - and what - they buy
While questions remain as to whether the changes could lift demand, Pakis noted that the removal of stamp duty could change both where first home buyers choose to purchase and the type of property they target.
She said some ACT residents had previously considered buying across the New South Wales border in areas such as Queanbeyan and Bungendore to take advantage of stamp duty concessions available outside the territory.
“I had a lot of people that lived in the ACT and they were like, well, we can move to Queanbeyan or we can move to Bungendore or just on the outer suburbs and buy our first home with no stamp duty up to, say, $800,000 in regional areas around Canberra and then be able to not pay stamp duty,” she said.
Moreover, the changes could also encourage buyers to remain in the ACT and target properties they may not previously have considered.
“It's actually giving them more quality of choice and a better kind of probably long-term aspect as asset wise and where they want to buy.
“It would be long-term instead of buying somewhere for a short term and then ending up paying stamp duty in five years' time on a bigger purchase anyway.”
Therefore, Pakis said that the changes may well encourage FHBs not only to remain in the ACT but also target properties with a longer term strategy.
“That could be a bigger house, or a suburb that they really want to be in.”
She added: “I think it's good for first home buyers. Anything to help them get into the market is really helpful.
“Ultimately, I think the best thing for them is that if the ACT government is willing to meet the states surrounding it, then it gives them an equal playing field.”
[Related: WA lifts first home buyer stamp duty thresholds]
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