First Home Buyer Grants & Schemes NSW

If you are buying your first home in NSW, there may be more support available than you realise.

Some schemes reduce your upfront costs. Others can help you buy with a smaller deposit. Some only apply to new homes, while others can also apply to existing properties.

This page explains the main first home buyer grants, concessions and schemes that buyers in NSW should know about right now.

At Help Street, we help first home buyers understand what may apply, what doesn’t, and how these schemes can affect deposit requirements, borrowing power and overall strategy.

Check What You're Eligible For →

NSW support for first home buyers

First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme (NSW)

The First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme is the main NSW stamp duty concession for eligible first home buyers.

For transactions under the current thresholds, eligible buyers can receive:

a full transfer duty exemption on new or existing homes valued up to $800,000
a concessional rate on homes above $800,000 and under $1 million
a full exemption on vacant land up to $350,000
a concessional rate on vacant land above $350,000 and under $450,000.

To qualify, at least one buyer must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident. Buyers must generally move into the property within 12 months and then live there for at least 12 months.

For many first home buyers, this can mean a major saving on upfront costs.

First Home Owner Grant (NSW)

The NSW First Home Owner Grant is a $10,000 grant for eligible first home buyers purchasing or building a new home. It is not available for established homes.

The current key thresholds are:

up to $600,000 for a newly built home
up to $750,000 combined for vacant land plus a building contract.

At least one applicant must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, and for contracts signed on or after 1 July 2023, the buyer must move in within 12 months and live there for at least 12 continuous months.

Federal support available to NSW Buyers:

Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme

The Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, formerly known as the Home Guarantee Scheme, helps eligible buyers purchase with a minimum 5% deposit without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance. Eligible single parents or legal guardians may be able to buy with a minimum 2% deposit.

Since 1 October 2025, the scheme has changed materially. Eligible first home buyers now benefit from:

no income caps
no waitlist or capped annual places
updated property price caps.

For eligible NSW buyers, the current published price caps are:

$1.5 million in capital cities and regional centres
$800,000 in other NSW areas.

The scheme is generally for buyers who are at least 18, are Australian citizens or permanent residents, have at least a 5% deposit, have not owned property or land in Australia in the last 10 years, and intend to live in the property.

Australian Government Help to Buy Scheme

Help to Buy is a federal shared equity scheme for eligible buyers.

Under the current settings, eligible buyers need a minimum 2% deposit and a home loan from a participating lender. The Australian Government can contribute up to 30% of the purchase price for an existing home or up to 40% for a newly built home.

The current income caps are:

$100,000 for individual applicants
$160,000 for single parents and joint applicants.

For NSW, the published property price caps are:

$1.3 million in capital city and regional centre locations
$800,000 in the rest of NSW.

Help to Buy cannot be used with other government support schemes that provide shared equity, loans or guarantees for purchase support, but eligible buyers can still benefit from stamp duty concessions, grants and other exemptions where available.

First Home Super Saver Scheme

The First Home Super Saver Scheme helps eligible first home buyers save toward a deposit through super.

It currently allows:

up to $15,000 in voluntary contributions per year
up to $50,000 total to be withdrawn, plus associated earnings, subject to the rules.

For some buyers, this can be a smart way to build deposit savings more efficiently over time.

Can some of these schemes be combined?

In many cases, yes.

Depending on your eligibility and property choice, a buyer in NSW may potentially combine stamp duty relief with the First Home Owner Grant, and may also be able to use federal support such as the 5% Deposit Scheme or First Home Super Saver Scheme where the scheme rules allow it. Help to Buy has stricter interaction rules and cannot be combined with other purchase-support loans, guarantees or shared equity schemes.

This is exactly where strategy matters. The “best” scheme is not always the one with the biggest headline. It is the one that fits your deposit, purchase price, borrowing capacity and longer-term goals.

What about regional NSW support?

Regional buyers can still access the mainstream NSW and federal support above, but the rules depend on the property location and price caps.

For example, under the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme, NSW capital cities and regional centres share a higher published cap of $1.5 million, while other NSW areas are capped at $800,000. Under Help to Buy, NSW capital city and regional centre caps are $1.3 million, while other NSW areas are capped at $800,000.

Rather than listing vague “regional support schemes,” it is better to explain the actual cap rules and then assess the buyer’s suburb and strategy case by case.

Schemes buyers still ask about

Some buyers still ask about the NSW Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper pilot. That pilot closed on 30 June 2024, so it should not be presented as a current mainstream option on this page.

Want to know what may apply to you?

Government schemes change. Price caps change. Eligibility rules change. Lender policy changes too.

If you want to understand what support may apply to your situation, the best next step is a quick strategy call. We can help you understand your likely deposit position, your borrowing power, the schemes that may be relevant, and which lenders are worth considering.

👉🏼 Check What You May Be Eligible For

*Last updated: 10 April 2026.
Government schemes, price caps and lender policies can change. Always confirm eligibility before making a purchase decision.

Government Links:
The Treasury, Australian Government
First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, Revenue NSW
First Home Buyers, Australian Government