What can you stack?
Pick your situation and see every scheme that applies, with real figures.
Figures assume you meet the standard first home buyer tests (age, citizenship or permanent residency, no previous property, and living in the home). The two minute checker walks through all of them.
First Home Owner Grant (New Homes)
The FHOG is a one off $10,000 payment for buying or building your first home, as long as it is new. That means a newly built house, an off the plan apartment, or a substantially renovated property. Established homes do not qualify.
The price caps matter: $600,000 if you are buying a new home, or $750,000 for the combined land and build cost if you are building. Every applicant needs to be 18 or older, at least one applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, and neither you nor your spouse can have owned residential property in Australia before. You also have to move in within 12 months of settlement and live there for at least 12 continuous months.
Most buyers never fill out the form themselves. Your lender or broker lodges the application with your home loan and the grant lands at settlement. You can also apply directly through Revenue NSW within 12 months of settlement, it just takes longer to process.
Official source: Revenue NSW
Stamp duty relief (First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme)
This is the big one in dollar terms, and almost nobody outside NSW property circles knows its real name. The First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme means you pay zero transfer duty on a first home up to $800,000, new or established. Between $800,000 and $1,000,000 the duty phases back in gradually, and above $1,000,000 you pay the standard rate like everyone else.
Buying vacant land to build on? Zero duty up to $350,000 and a concession up to $450,000.
The savings are serious. On an $800,000 home a normal buyer pays over $30,000 in duty. As an eligible first home buyer you pay nothing. There is no application to chase either, your conveyancer claims it when the transfer is processed.
One piece of history worth knowing so old articles do not confuse you: the First Home Buyer Choice property tax option was scrapped back in July 2023. If you are buying in 2026, FHBAS is the scheme, full stop.
Official source: Revenue NSW
First Home Guarantee: 5% deposit, no LMI
The federal First Home Guarantee, now marketed as the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, lets you buy with just a 5% deposit while the government guarantees the rest to your lender, so you skip Lenders Mortgage Insurance entirely. On a Sydney priced home LMI alone can run $15,000 to $35,000, which is why this scheme moves the needle so much.
Since October 2025 there are no income caps and no limit on places. The catch is the property price cap: $1,500,000 in Sydney and the major regional centres (Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, the Central Coast, Illawarra, Coffs Harbour, the Mid North Coast and Richmond Tweed), and $800,000 in the rest of NSW. You also need to move in within six months of settlement. Housing Australia runs the scheme through participating lenders, so you apply through your lender or broker, not through a government portal.
Official source: firsthomebuyers.gov.au (Housing Australia)
First Home Super Saver Scheme
The FHSSS lets you build your deposit inside super, where savings are taxed at 15% instead of your marginal rate. You make voluntary contributions of up to $15,000 a year, then release up to $50,000 per person (plus associated earnings) when you are ready to buy. A couple can pull out up to $100,000 between them.
It rewards planning ahead: the tax benefit compounds the earlier you start. Request the release through the ATO before you sign a contract, and allow a few weeks for the money to arrive.
Official source: Australian Taxation Office
Help to Buy: the government co-buys with you
Help to Buy is the newest scheme, launched in December 2025. The federal government chips in up to 40% of the price of a new home, or 30% of an established one, as a shared equity stake. You only need a 2% deposit, and there is no rent or interest on the government share. You buy it back over time, or settle it when you sell.
It is income tested: $103,000 for singles and $165,000 for couples and single parents, using your previous financial year taxable income (these caps rose on 1 July 2026). In NSW the price caps are $1,300,000 for Sydney and the major regional centres and $800,000 elsewhere, which sit below the 5% deposit scheme caps. Places are limited to 10,000 a year and a fresh round opened on 1 July 2026, so if you qualify and the maths works, get in early. One trade off to know: you cannot use Help to Buy and the 5% deposit guarantee together.
Official source: firsthomebuyers.gov.au (Housing Australia)
Three real price points
The same figures the stamp duty calculator uses, applied to three typical purchases in New South Wales.
A new apartment in Western Sydney or a house and land package regionally
- FHOG: $10,000
- Duty saved: $19,162
An established unit or townhouse in the middle ring
- FHOG: not eligible
- Duty saved: $29,512
Over the $1m cap, so no duty relief, but federal schemes still apply
- FHOG: not eligible
- Full duty applies: $41,662
How to actually get the money
Run the eligibility checker
Two minutes, all seven schemes at once. It tells you exactly which ones you qualify for before you talk to anyone.
Get your broker to do the paperwork
The FHOG and First Home Guarantee are both applied for through your lender. A broker who works with first home buyers every week lodges these with your loan application, and it costs you nothing.
Duty relief happens at transfer
Your conveyancer claims the FHBAS exemption when the property transfers. No separate application, but tell them you are a first home buyer early so nothing is missed.
Keep the residency rules
Move in within 12 months of settlement and stay at least 12 continuous months. Break that and Revenue NSW can claw the money back.
Straight answers
How much is the first home buyer grant in NSW in 2026?
The NSW First Home Owner Grant is $10,000 for new homes valued up to $600,000, or up to $750,000 for land plus build if you are constructing. It applies to newly built homes, off the plan purchases, and substantially renovated properties. Established homes do not qualify for the grant.
Do first home buyers pay stamp duty in NSW?
Not on homes up to $800,000. The First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme gives a full transfer duty exemption up to $800,000 and a phased concession between $800,000 and $1,000,000. Above $1,000,000 standard duty applies with no first home buyer relief.
Can I get the FHOG for an existing home in NSW?
No. The grant is only for new builds, off the plan purchases, and substantially renovated homes. Buying established? You can still pay zero stamp duty up to $800,000 through FHBAS, and use the federal First Home Guarantee and Help to Buy schemes.
Can I combine the FHOG with the 5% deposit scheme and stamp duty exemption?
Yes. Nothing in the rules of the FHOG, the stamp duty exemption or the First Home Guarantee prevents using all three on the same purchase, so an eligible buyer of a new home under $600,000 can take the $10,000 grant, pay zero duty and buy with a 5% deposit. The one hard exclusion is Help to Buy, which cannot be combined with the 5% deposit guarantee. The super saver scheme works alongside everything.
How long do I have to live in the property?
For both the FHOG and the stamp duty exemption you must move in within 12 months of settlement and live there for at least 12 continuous months. The old 6 month rule ended in 2023, so ignore older articles that mention it.
How long does the NSW FHOG application take?
Lodged through your lender, it is usually approved with your loan and paid at settlement. Applying directly through Revenue NSW after settlement takes longer, typically several weeks, and you must apply within 12 months of settlement.