Assistance for First Home Buyers in WA

Buying a property in Perth, particularly for first home buyers, is fraught, with record low stock available combined with the largest population growth in the country. First home buyers are entering their first property search with intrepidation and angst and a constantly changing landscape. What your budget could buy 3 months ago has now changed and prices just keep going up and up...and up. WA experienced record population growth in 2025, surpassing 3 million people as the nation's fastest-growing state. This has created high demand within the Perth property market leading to a continued rise in median dwelling values and high competition for properties. Both the state and federal governments are throwing things at housing in an attempt to help first home buyers get into the market so it's hard to know exactly what help is available. A good mortgage broker should be able to tell you all your options but with many brokers operating online from over east, not all brokers are across all the options available to first home buyers in WA. So what options are out there?

First Home Owner Grant (provider: WA Government)

The First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) is a one-off payment of $10,000 to buy or build a new home. This grant is not available for the purchase of established homes but may be available for extensively renovated homes. Total value of the home (including house and land) must not exceed $750,000 for properties south of the 26th parallel (roughly in line with Shark Bay in the north west region), which includes the Perth metro area, and a $1million threshold north of the 26th parallel.

First Home Owner Rate (provider: WA Government)

The First Home Owner Rate (FHOR) is a concessional rate of duty (ie. stamp duty) available to first home buyers, including those who may have qualified for the FHOG but aren't buying or building a new home. It's for first home buyers buying established homes or vacant land.

The FHOR now has little impact for first home buyers buying an established home in the Perth and Peel regions due to the rise in median dwelling values, as many homes are now above the maximum value threshold of $700,000 for the FHOR in these areas ($750,000 in other areas south of the 26th parallel, as well as north of the 26th parallel). First home buyers buying outside of Perth and Peel regions may still benefit from the FHOR given the lower median dwelling values in these regions.

Keep in mind the FHOR has minimal impact at the upper threshold limit. A first home buyer purchasing a $685,000 property in the Perth metro area today would pay $25,215.50 in stamp duty compared to a non-first home buyer paying $26,552.50, a saving of $1,337 to first home buyers. The real impact of the FHOR was had when the Perth median dwelling value was much lower, with no duty payable for first home buyers for purchases up to $500,000.

The FHOR is also available for the purchase of vacant land. The purchase price must not exceed $450,000 and no duty is payable if the land is $350,000 or less.

Home Buyers Assistance Account (provider: WA Government)

The Home Buyers Assistance Account is a grant of $2,000* available to first home buyers for incidental expenses like settlement agent or mortgage registration fees for purchases under $500,000. However, it has become primarily defunct now that Perth dwelling values have risen so exponentially in the last few years. Unless you're buying a one bedroom unit (and even then, not all of them) this assistance would likely only be available to a very small number of current first home buyers in WA. We'd like to see this rise in line with the First Home Owner Grant threshold for purchases up to $750,000.

Bought a property for under $500,000 as a first home buyer recently but didn't know about this assistance? You have 90 days to apply for it after the date of settlement.

*Grant is paid to your lending institution and not paid directly to the individual.

Low Deposit Options or Not A First Home Buyer?

5% Deposit Scheme (provider: Australian Government)

The 5% Deposit Scheme allows first home buyers to get into the market with—like it says on the box—only a 5% deposit. Single parents and legal guardians who aren't first home buyers can also use this scheme with a minimum 2% deposit required. There are no income caps to use this scheme but the purchase limit is $850,000 in the Perth metro area and $600,000 for the rest of WA.

You might have read from our previous blog that the 5% Deposit Scheme maybe wasn't the best thing for the Perth property market. While it certainly helped more first home buyers get into the market when it was introduced in October 2025, it's now pushed the Perth median dwelling price much higher due to the surge in demand for properties under the $850,000 purchase threshold. In a few short months, this scheme has priced a lot of first home buyers out of the market completely as their serviceability struggles against rising property prices and interest rates.

At the maximum allowed Perth purchase price of $850,000 using the 5% Deposit Scheme, first home buyers would need a minimum deposit of $42,500, with repayments on a 5.8% interest rate with principal and interest repayments at $4,738 per month. This is out of reach in terms of serviceability for many first home buyers.

This scheme is also available to single parents and legal guardians who may not be first home buyers but only need a minimum 2% deposit, which also likely cuts out a whole lot of buyers who fall into this category for the reasons as stated above. They are priced out of the market and not able to meet the serviceability requirements at the higher end of the purchasing threshold.

While there are no income caps for this scheme, those who can afford to service a higher loan now have limited options to purchase in Perth under the required $850,000 price cap.

Help to Buy Scheme (provider: Australian Government)

This is another federal initiative to help more first and low-income buyers into the market. This is a shared-equity scheme where the government will contribute up to 30% of the purchase price for existing homes, or 40% for newly built homes, also with a purchase cap of $850,000 in the Perth metro area and $600,000 in the rest of WA. There are income caps with this scheme – up to $100,000 for individual applicants or $160,000 for single parents and joint applicants – with borrowers requiring a minimum 2% deposit.

These loans are non-broker options so you will need to apply directly to the two participating lenders yourself (currently the Commonwealth Bank or Bank Australia). As an example, you could purchase an $800,000 home with a 2% deposit of $16,000, while the Government would contribute $240,000 (30% of the purchase price) and you would borrow $544,000 (68% of the purchase price after your 2% deposit, a 70% share in total) from a participating lender.

Other Shared Equity Options in WA

There are other shared equity loan options available to first home buyers and low-income earners in WA via Keystart Loans, such as the Shared Ownership Home Loan and the Urban Connect Shared Equity Home Loan.

Your first step should be asking your broker for all the options available to you as a first home buyer or low-income earner in WA.

*Disclaimer: This information should be considered general in nature and is not to be considered as financial advice. Please speak with your lender or broker for more detailed information on the options available to you as a first home buyer in WA.