# First home buyers grant increase (until June 2009)!



## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

For those of you who haven't bought your first home here there is some great news. It's just been announced by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd that first home buyers grant is going to be doubled to $14,000 for those who buy an established home and tripled to $21,000 for those who buy a new a newly built home, and this will remain in place until the end of the financial year (30th June 2009). 

This is part of some bonuses to strengthen the Australian economy.

More can be read about it here:
$10b: Rudd ramps it up - National - smh.com.au 

Regards,
Karen


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

very helpful, except that it seems almost like a drop in the bucket when any house sells for about half a mill nowadays


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

Tiffani said:


> very helpful, except that it seems almost like a drop in the bucket when any house sells for about half a mill nowadays


That depends on where you are looking since around here you can still buy units from $75,000 so $14,000 is quite a high percentage. I'm not saying that the units are great but they will get someone started on the property ladder. New build houses are around $300,000 so $21,000 isn't bad. 

We found the $7,000 (which we received) very useful since we weren't expecting it and certainly helped with the initial outlay when we moved here. 

In the UK at the moment you get nothing to help you get started at all!

Regards,
Karen


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## zoeburrell (Oct 13, 2007)

I guess that'll be for people with permanent resident status only? We'll be out there (hopefully end of next month  ) but on a business owner visa. We won't get PR for at least 2 years  Thanks Zoe x


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

zoeburrell said:


> I guess that'll be for people with permanent resident status only? We'll be out there (hopefully end of next month  ) but on a business owner visa. We won't get PR for at least 2 years  Thanks Zoe x


Hi Zoe, 
Yes it's for citizens or PR status only. However there will still be something available in a few years. BTW if you are moving over next month then you probably have to wait 4 years to apply to citizenship since the rules were changed last year (I think it depends on when your visa was granted). 

More info for the individual states can be found at:
First Home Owners Scheme but some of the sites haven't updated the amount info yet since it was just announced on 14th October. 

Regards,
Karen


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## MandM (Oct 8, 2008)

how long were you there Kaz, before you moved from rent to purchase?


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

MandM said:


> how long were you there Kaz, before you moved from rent to purchase?


We didn't rent at all. We were advised to buy a house before we moved out here since because we are both self employed and if we didn't do it that way then it would be a couple of years before we could buy because we wouldn't be able to prove our income to the mortgage lenders over here. 

We had already visited Oz a few times and in Feb 2007 we came over with the intention of finding an area and a home and that's what we did. We bought the house in February 2007 with a long settlement (completion as we call in the UK) and then moved over in July 2007. 

I know that isn't the conventional way but that's how we did it and it's worked very well for us. We love Mount Gambier and have had incredible support from local groups we've joined.

Regards,
Karen


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

don't get me wrong, every little bit helps, but the housing prices in Melbourne are shocking. No way would I buy in the middle of this bubble!

Good luck to everyone else out there who's looking though


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## IrishAngel (Mar 12, 2008)

be warned y'all, the bubble burst here and it will more than likely happen there, probably end of next year, so cheap cheap houses for all in 2010 : )


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## ijbrown (Jul 20, 2008)

Tiffani said:


> don't get me wrong, every little bit helps, but the housing prices in Melbourne are shocking. No way would I buy in the middle of this bubble!
> 
> Good luck to everyone else out there who's looking though


Best thing to do now then if living in the uk sell you house take the profit and put in an ozzie dollar account then wait for the prices in Australia to fall.

Does anyone know if the first time buyer discount applys to all types of visa ?


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## tcscivic12 (Jul 2, 2008)

ijbrown said:


> Best thing to do now then if living in the uk sell you house take the profit and put in an ozzie dollar account then wait for the prices in Australia to fall.
> 
> Does anyone know if the first time buyer discount applys to all types of visa ?


As stated above it applies to citizens and PR.


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## MandM (Oct 8, 2008)

wish i was making some money on _MY_ house sale! blooody prices over here no fun either, you do well to even sell at the moment!


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

We've just got the FHOG and the Principal Place of Residence Grant.

We had settlement in August and had 3 months to lodge the applications. We started the ball rolling at the beginning of September and have only now been approved. It's been a bit of a nightmare really. We'd filled in the forms, given all the certified docs they required and then were told that they've changed the criteria and they needed more proof. So, the application was sent back to our conveyancer. We were asked to provide a certified copy of the visa page of our passports. So, got that done, Conveyancer sent it off. All OK. She then got the application back because they wanted certified documents of the children's birth certificates. Did this, sent if off. Conveyancer then received the application back as they wanted a certified copy of proof that I lived at the address (considering I'm on the contract we were a little bemused) but we got a certified copy of the car insurance as it's in my name only. Sent that off. Conveyancer then got the application back because they wanted something with both our names on (utility bill wasn't enough as it only has husbands name on).

By this time we were pulling our hair out. The SRO have a system whereby if they come across a problem, they don't go through the whole of the application to see if there are others, they just send it back. And if they come across another, it goes back again. MADNESS!!! Because of the changes in documented evidence we think that even they didn't know what was actually needed. 

We actually ended up going back to Kitty (the pharmacist who certified all our docs) 5 times. She knew more about our personal lives by the end of the than we did!!!

To top it all off, we missed out on the extra $7K that Kevo has just announced (thanks mate) 

Dolly


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

Wow Dolly we didn't have to go through anything like that in South Australia. 

I think you have to apply within 6 months in South Australia so we had to do ours pretty quickly towards the end of last year. 

All utility bills & bank accounts are in joint names - we find it easier since otherwise they often won't talk to the spouse.

We have Australian driving licences which have the address on them. 

I sent an email to the South Australia authorities to check that we could apply since we had investment properties in Australia and they said yes. 

We printed forms from the website, took one down to our conveyancer for him to sign, and then sent off the forms. A few weeks later the money arrived in our bank account and then about a week after that we received the letter saying it had been approved  

Regards,
Karen


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

I don't think we would have had a problem if they hadn't changed the rules halfway through, otherwise it would've been a piece of cake. Ho Hum!

Dolly


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

Dolly said:


> I don't think we would have had a problem if they hadn't changed the rules halfway through, otherwise it would've been a piece of cake. Ho Hum!
> 
> Dolly


Well we had to apply on our own since no-one mentioned it to us when we first bought our home. It was only because we read about it in a property magazine that we realised that we could apply. 

Regards,
Karen


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## Drake (Mar 14, 2009)

Hi, I saw your comments on the forum. We are also applying for a Business Owner visa - just waiting for a Case Officer (its so frustrating!). Where are you looking to settle is AUS? How long has it taken you? Thanks, Julie


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## kaz101 (Nov 29, 2007)

Hi Julie, 

This is an old post so who was your question directed at?

Regards,
Karen


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## Drake (Mar 14, 2009)

*Any business owner visa applicants out there??*



kaz101 said:


> Hi Julie,
> 
> This is an old post so who was your question directed at?
> 
> ...


Sorry, can't see them now (my mistake).

I am having a lot of trouble finding threads that have anything to do with people who are applying for a Business Owner visa (same as us). It seems most people are going out on Skills list. I would love to find more info on other peoples experiences in applying for Business Owner visa, how long it is taking them etc etc.

We are husband wife and 10 yr old daughter. We have family in Bunbury already there.

WA State Sponsorship applied for in April 09
WA State Sponsorship granted in July 09
DIAC Business Owner visa applied in August 09
..... still waiting for Case Officer to be appointed.
We are using Visa Immigration Lawyers who have been great, but they say we may hear by December 09 or it may even be as late as June 2010.

In the meantime; house up for sale, business up for sale, classic car sold, motorboat sold, deposit paid and place waiting for daughter in AUS school.

Can you give any help re finding others in similar position, or just any other Business Owner applicants. Even the emigration magazines just focus on skills people.

Thanks
JD


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