Grants and schemes in Western Australia

Western Australia has three kinds of help for a first home buyer: the state's First Home Owner Grant, Keystart's government-backed loans, and the two federal schemes. Every one has an eligibility test this page summarises but cannot apply.

First Home Owner Grant

The grant is a one-off payment of up to $10,000 for an eligible applicant buying or building a first new home. It does not apply to an established home, and there is no income or assets test. The cap is $800,000 south of the 26th parallel of south latitude, which takes in all of Perth, and $1,000,000 north of it, for transactions from 7 May 2026. The 2026-27 State Budget lifted the southern cap in step with building costs.

The residence rule is the one that catches people. Each applicant has to occupy the home as their principal place of residence for a continuous six months, starting within twelve months of completion. Fail that and the grant is repayable with penalties and costs, and the first home owner rate of duty can go with it. The other tests, on age, citizenship or residency and prior ownership, were not confirmed from this environment; the FHOG fact sheet sets them out. The application is form FHOG1, which also applies for the duty rate.

State schemes

Keystart is the state's low-deposit lender, backed by the WA Government. Its low-deposit home loan starts from a 2 per cent deposit with no lenders mortgage insurance, for an established, new or modular home. A shared ownership loan has the Housing Authority co-own a share, which lowers the loan; the flexible version lets the buyer increase their share over time. Urban Connect Shared Equity has the government act as a silent partner to lift the purchase price range by up to 35 per cent or $250,000. It covers new, under-construction and off-the-plan apartments, townhouses, units and villas anywhere in WA, and income limits apply.

Keystart caps the price of the property it lends on. The limit is reviewed against REIWA price data; the August 2025 update brought every region to the same figure. The current limit was not confirmed from this environment; Keystart's before-you-apply page has it. No WA scheme is recorded as closed in the sources checked.

Federal schemes in Western Australia

The 5% Deposit Scheme is the main stream of the Home Guarantee Scheme. It supports a new or existing home at or below the price cap for its location. From 1 October 2025 the scheme has unlimited places, no income cap and higher price caps. Housing Australia's postcode search tool gives the cap as a guide; the participating lender confirms it. The current WA caps were not confirmed from this environment.

Help to Buy is the federal shared equity scheme. The Commonwealth takes up to 30 per cent of an established home or 40 per cent of a new one, and applications opened on 5 December 2025. It operates where a state has passed enabling legislation. Whether WA has, and the WA price caps, were not confirmed from this environment.

How they combine

The duty concession, the grant and a deposit scheme are separate tests; passing one says nothing about another. Since 7 May 2026 the duty rate is no longer tied to the grant's cap, so an eligible buyer can hold one without the other. Where they meet is the deposit. The grant adds to savings, Keystart lends from 2 per cent with no LMI, and duty relief lowers the cash needed at settlement. The LMI calculator shows what a smaller deposit costs without a guarantee; the deposit timeline calculator shows how long a target takes to reach.

The tests that catch people out

Six questions decide most cases.

1. Prior ownership. Whether a partner's earlier home counts against the applicant was not confirmed here; the FHOG fact sheet sets out the test.
2. Moving in on time. Six continuous months, starting within twelve months of completion, for every applicant. Anything that delays the move puts the grant and the duty rate at risk.
3. The contract date. The southern cap and the duty thresholds apply to transactions from 7 May 2026; a contract signed a day earlier sits under the old figures.
4. Citizenship or residency. The First Home Owner Grant Act 2000 applies a test; its terms were not confirmed here.
5. A co-buyer who is not eligible. Every applicant has to meet the tests, so check a co-buyer's history with RevenueWA first.
6. What counts as new. The grant is for a first new home only. Urban Connect covers new, under-construction and off-the-plan dwellings, not established ones.

The report does not test eligibility. For one property it shows where the asking price sits against recorded sales and what duty and the purchase costs come to.