Great news for off the plan apartment purchasers yesterday, as the WA state government announced a generous transfer duty rebate. The rebate is designed to give the property and construction sectors a much needed shot in the arm.
The rebate will run for two years, is effective immediately and provides a 75% transfer duty rebate of up to $50,000. The rebate is available to purchasers who sign pre-construction contracts to buy a new residential unit or apartment in a multi-tiered development.
By way of example, if a purchaser buys an off the plan apartment for $500,000 the transfer duty which would ordinarily be $17,765 will be reduced to $4,441. This is a saving of over $13,000.
Although there is no cap on the purchase price, the rebate is capped at $50,000 which would equate to a $1.5 million purchase. Multiple rebates will be available to the same purchaser for multiple unit or apartment purchases in the same or different developments.
Looking at the fine print, the rebate seems to be available to all purchasers (natural persons, trustees, companies and foreign buyers). The rebate applicant needs to be the purchaser named on the pre-construction contract or an eligible transferee, and the construction of the new residential unit or apartment must be completed within 36 months of the pre-construction contract being signed.
I think this is a good initiative which will hopefully stimulate the WA economy, create jobs and push towards density targets.
Daniel Breheny
Director
