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: no price cap
SA pays up to $15,000 for buying or building a new home, and since June 2024 there is no property price cap at all. New means never occupied: a new build, off the plan, a contract to build, or a substantially renovated home. Established homes do not qualify.
At least one applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident and everyone must be 18 or older. One tightening to know: for contracts from 13 February 2025, you are ineligible if you or your spouse have ever held an interest in Australian residential property, even one you never lived in. Live in the home for six continuous months starting within 12 months of settlement.
Apply through an approved agent, usually your lender, if you want the money at settlement, or directly with RevenueSA within 12 months.
Official source: RevenueSA
Stamp duty: free on new, full price on established
SA is refreshingly binary. Buy or build a new home, an off the plan apartment, a house and land package or vacant land to build on, and you pay zero stamp duty with no price cap, for contracts from 6 June 2024. Buy an established home and you pay the full standard rate, because SA offers no first home buyer duty relief on established homes at all.
That makes the maths stark: on a $700,000 purchase, choosing a new build over an established home saves roughly $32,000 in duty before the $15,000 grant even enters the picture. Your conveyancer claims the relief at transfer, and duty paid in error is refundable for five years.
Official source: RevenueSA
HomeStart: low deposits and shared equity, SA style
HomeStart is the state lender, and none of its products charge Lenders Mortgage Insurance. The headline options: a 2% deposit to build a house and land package with partner builders, a 2% Graduate Loan if you hold a Certificate III or higher (frontline police, firefighters and defence personnel qualify without one), 3% on the Low Deposit Loan for existing homes, and a standard 5% HomeStart Loan.
There is also a Shared Equity Option where HomeStart puts in up to 25% of the price, interest free with no repayments until you sell or refinance, for households earning up to $120,000 after tax on homes up to $750,000. It stacks with most HomeStart loans.
Official source: HomeStart
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 a 5% deposit while the government guarantees the rest. No income caps and no place limits since October 2025.
SA price caps: $900,000 for Adelaide and $500,000 for the rest of the state. Move in within six months of settlement, and apply through your lender or broker. It stacks with the grant and the new build duty exemption.
Official source: firsthomebuyers.gov.au (Housing Australia)
First Home Super Saver Scheme
Build your deposit inside super, taxed at 15% instead of your marginal rate. Contribute up to $15,000 a year voluntarily and release up to $50,000 per person plus associated earnings when you buy. Request the release through the ATO before signing and allow a few weeks.
Official source: Australian Taxation Office
Three real price points
The same figures the stamp duty calculator uses, applied to three typical purchases in South Australia.
A new build in the northern suburbs: grant plus zero duty
- FHOG: $15,000
- Duty saved: $26,830
The identical price established: full duty, no grant
- FHOG: not eligible
- Full duty applies: $26,830
A bigger new build: still zero duty and the full grant
- FHOG: $15,000
- Duty saved: $40,580
How to actually get the money
Run the eligibility checker
Two minutes, every scheme at once, including whether HomeStart products fit your income.
Let your broker lodge the paperwork
The grant and the 5% deposit guarantee both go through your lender. HomeStart loans go through HomeStart or its brokers.
Duty relief happens at transfer
On a new home your conveyancer claims the exemption at transfer. Established homes have nothing to claim in SA.
Keep the residency rules
Live in the home for six continuous months starting within 12 months of settlement, or RevenueSA can claw the benefits back.
Straight answers
How much is the first home owner grant in South Australia in 2026?
Up to $15,000 for buying or building a new home, with no property price cap since June 2024. It covers new builds, off the plan purchases, contracts to build and substantially renovated homes. Established homes do not qualify.
Do first home buyers pay stamp duty in SA?
Not on new homes. Since June 2024 there is no stamp duty on new builds, off the plan purchases, house and land packages or vacant land to build on, with no price cap. Established homes get no first home buyer duty relief in SA and pay the standard rate.
Should I buy new or established in SA?
Financially the state has stacked the deck for new. A $700,000 new build comes with the $15,000 grant and zero duty, while the same priced established home gets neither, a swing of roughly $47,000. Established buyers can still use the federal 5% deposit guarantee and Help to Buy.
What is HomeStart?
The SA Government backed lender. It offers deposits from 2% with no Lenders Mortgage Insurance on any product, plus a shared equity option where HomeStart contributes up to 25% interest free for households earning under $120,000 on homes up to $750,000.
How long do I have to live in the property in SA?
Six continuous months as your principal place of residence, starting within 12 months of settlement or construction completion.