Buying your first home in South Australia: the relief, the grant, and the line that decides both

South Australia will take an eligible first home buyer's stamp duty bill to zero on a new home, an off-the-plan apartment, or vacant land to build on. There is no property value cap. Buy an established house instead and you pay full duty, the same as any other buyer, with no first home discount.

That one distinction decides more about what a first purchase costs here than anything else on this page.

Check the figures before you rely on them. Every number below was read off the RevenueSA, SA.GOV.AU and Victorian State Revenue Office websites on 21 September 2026. Relief rules and grant amounts change at budget time and sometimes in between, so confirm the current position at revenuesa.sa.gov.au before you commit.

New builds get the relief. Established homes get nothing

RevenueSA sets out exactly which properties qualify, and the list is short.

RevenueSA treats an established home as one already built and previously occupied or sold as a residence. There is no relief on it. Not reduced, not partial. Full duty.

The vacant land category is broader than people expect. It covers owner builders and contracts to build, which is how most house and land packages are written. A shed or a garage does not count.

Now the good half. For contracts entered into on or after 6 June 2024 there is no property value cap at all. An eligible new home at $500,000 and one at $1.4 million both get full relief. Older contracts had caps: $700,000 for a new home and $450,000 for vacant land between 15 June 2023 and 5 June 2024, and no relief at all before that.

So the South Australian deal is generous and narrow at the same time. Full relief with no ceiling, but only on something newly built. Quote one half of that without the other and someone ends up with a nasty surprise at settlement.

What full duty on an established home actually costs

Worth doing on paper before you fall in love with a 1960s brick place.

South Australian conveyance duty runs on one scale for everyone, with no separate owner-occupier rate. Above $500,000 the charge is $21,330 plus $5.50 for every $100, or part of $100, over $500,000.

Take an established house at $600,000. That is $100,000 above the threshold, so $5,500 on top of $21,330, giving $26,830 in duty. You find that in cash, on top of your deposit, because lenders generally will not add it to the loan.

Here is the comparison that catches people reading advice written for the eastern states. A Victorian first home buyer paying $600,000 for an established house in Cranbourne pays nothing, because Victoria's exemption covers new and established homes up to $600,000. Same price, roughly a $27,000 difference. We cover the Victorian side separately, and the full South Australian duty picture here.

The $15,000 grant is a separate application

The First Home Owner Grant in South Australia is a one-off payment of up to $15,000 for buying or building a new residential property to live in.

It runs alongside the duty relief, but RevenueSA is clear that you apply for each separately.

The grant covers a new home, an off-the-plan apartment, a substantially renovated home bought from a developer, a building contract, and owner builders. It does not cover an established home, and it does not cover vacant land on its own. That last one trips people up: the duty relief attaches to the land purchase, but the grant waits until you have a contract to build.

Like the duty relief, the grant has had no property value cap since 6 June 2024. Before that it was $650,000, and before 15 June 2023 it was $575,000.

The application has to be in within 12 months of completion. If you need the money at settlement or for a first progress payment, lodge it through an approved agent, usually your lender.

Who counts as a first home buyer in South Australia

Every applicant has to be at least 18 and a natural person, and at least one of you must be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen living permanently in Australia on a Special Category visa. Companies and trusts are out, apart from a Special Disability Trust.

The prior ownership rule tightened on 13 February 2025. For contracts entered into on or after that date, you are not eligible if you or your spouse or domestic partner own or have ever owned residential property in Australia. Under the older rule you could still qualify if you had owned a place but lived in it for less than six continuous months. That carve-out is gone.

You are also out if you or your partner have already received first home buyer stamp duty relief, or its equivalent, in any state or territory.

Your partner's details go on the application whether or not they are buying with you. Their history counts as yours.

Four things people assume will disqualify them, and do not:

• Property you owned overseas. RevenueSA does not consider residential property outside Australia.
• Vacant land. Owning a block, now or in the past, does not affect your application.
• Commercial, industrial or primary production land. Same answer. The shop does not make you a second home buyer.
• An ex-partner's property, if you are divorced or separated. It is left out, though you will need a divorce order or a statutory declaration.

The relief is not means tested. Your income does not come into it.

The residence requirement, and the 14 day rule

You have to actually live there. All applicants must occupy the home as their principal place of residence for a continuous period of at least six months, and the window for starting depends on what you bought.

A principal place of residence means the home you primarily live in with your belongings on an ongoing basis. Staying somewhere briefly while you get it ready to sell does not count, and RevenueSA can ask for utility accounts or bank statements to prove the period.

There is some flexibility. You can rent the place out before you move in, as long as your six months still starts inside the window, and you can rent out a room while you are living there.

If something changes and you cannot meet the requirement, tell RevenueSA in writing within 14 days. Miss that and you are looking at interest and penalties on top of the duty. A narrow exemption exists for permanent members of the Australian Defence Force enrolled to vote in South Australian elections.

South Australia next to Victoria

South Australia is more generous at the top end and harsher on an established home at any price. Victoria rewards you for buying under its thresholds. South Australia rewards you for buying new. Reading one state's advice in the other will cost you.

What catches South Australian first home buyers out

Missing the relief at settlement. If it was not claimed when duty was assessed you can still apply for a refund, but only within five years of settlement, and you will need a SAILIS valuation. Easier to get right the first time.

The foreign ownership surcharge. RevenueSA treats you as a foreign person if you are not an Australian citizen, not a permanent resident, and not a New Zealand citizen holding a Special Category visa (subclass 444). If that describes one of you, a 7% surcharge applies to that person's interest in the residential land, on top of ordinary duty. For contracts from 13 February 2025, first home buyer relief does not extend to the surcharge, and the Commissioner has no discretion to waive it. If your residency position is complicated, see a solicitor or an accountant before you sign. That sits outside what a conveyancer can advise on.

Cooling off is short, and it depends on the Form 1. You get two clear business days, starting when you receive the vendor's statement (Form 1) or when the contract was signed, whichever happens last. There is none at all if you buy at auction, or on the same day an auction was held. We have written a fuller explanation if you are close to making an offer.

Waiving cooling off on a pre-auction offer. It still applies unless you waive it, and only an independent legal practitioner can sign the prescribed form. A registered conveyancer cannot, so we will flag it early and you can line up a solicitor.

Frequently asked questions

I am a first home buyer in South Australia. Do I really pay stamp duty on an established house?

Yes. The relief only covers a new home, an off-the-plan apartment, or vacant land to build on. An established home attracts full duty, with no first home discount.

Can I get both the $15,000 grant and the stamp duty relief?

Often yes on an eligible new build, but they are separate applications, so you can qualify for one and not the other. A vacant land purchase is the clearest example: the duty relief can apply to the land while the grant waits for a building contract.

My partner owned a unit years ago. Does that stop me?

For contracts entered into on or after 13 February 2025, yes. If either of you has ever held an interest in Australian residential property, neither of you is eligible. Their details go on the application even if they are not buying with you.

I own a block of land and a small commercial property. Am I still a first home buyer?

Most likely. RevenueSA does not count vacant land, or commercial, industrial or primary production land. Residential property is what matters.

Do I need to be in South Australia to use a conveyancer?

No, and neither do we. South Australian conveyancing runs through an electronic workspace where the instruments are prepared, duty is paid, and the transfer is lodged with Land Services SA. Nobody has to be in the room.

Talk to us before you sign

The new build against established home question decides your duty bill, and it is far easier to work through before a contract is signed. Send us what you are looking at and we will tell you where it sits.

Wise Step Conveyancing is registered in South Australia with Consumer and Business Services and acts for South Australian clients electronically. Our office is in Cranbourne, Victoria, and we are available weekdays, and on weekends by appointment. See how we handle a property purchase, get in touch, or ask us for a quote.

This article is general information about South Australian conveyancing and is not legal advice for your particular transaction. Speak to us about your specific circumstances.