First home buyer stamp duty in South Australia
South Australia gives its first home buyers a complete stamp duty exemption on new property, with no price limit, and nothing at all on an existing home.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Methodology
A first home buyer in South Australia pays no stamp duty on a new home, an off-the-plan apartment or a block of land to build on, whatever the price, for contracts from 13 February 2025; on an established home the full conveyance scale applies. The contrast is stark at ordinary prices. A $650,000 new townhouse in Adelaide costs a first buyer $0 in duty, while a $650,000 older house costs $29,580. RevenueSA removed the value cap in 2025, so a $1,200,000 new house is just as exempt. The relief does not touch the 7 % foreign ownership surcharge, which remains payable on any share bought by a foreign person. The home has to be occupied as the principal place of residence for six continuous months, starting within twelve months. On top of the duty relief, the First Home Owner Grant pays up to $15,000 on a new home with no price cap, though never on land bought alone. The SA scale itself is not indexed, so these figures hold from year to year.
Established, new or land: duty for a first home
New home
$0
| Established home | $26,830 |
| Vacant land at this price | $0 |
| Grant on the new home | $15,000 |
New, off the plan or land: three doors in, one shut
South Australia draws its line by the age of the dwelling, not by its price. RevenueSA lists three kinds of eligible property: a new home, an apartment bought off the plan, and vacant land on which you will build your first home. An established home is the door that stays shut. There is no partial concession for it, no reduced rate and no threshold below which it becomes free.
That makes the decision between a new and an older home unusually expensive in SA. The table puts numbers on it, using the ordinary conveyance scale for the established column.
| Price | Established home | New home or off the plan | Land to build on |
|---|---|---|---|
| $400,000 | $16,330 | $0 | $0 |
| $500,000 | $21,330 | $0 | $0 |
| $650,000 | $29,580 | $0 | $0 |
| $800,000 | $37,830 | $0 | $0 |
| $1,000,000 | $48,830 | $0 | $0 |
| $1,200,000 | $59,830 | $0 | $0 |
At $500,000 the older home costs $21,330 more in duty. At $800,000 the gap is $37,830. Add the grant of up to $15,000 on the new home and the difference grows again.
Why the price no longer matters
The relief started with value thresholds. For contracts from 13 February 2025 those limits were removed, and the exemption is now total on an eligible property at any value. The calculator treats a new home at $2,000,000 the same way it treats one at $450,000: no duty for the first home buyer. Without the relief, the $2,000,000 home would carry $103,830.
The SA scale itself is not indexed. RevenueSA's top rate of $5.50 per $100 starts at $500,000, so every dollar of a typical family home above that value is taxed at the top rate. The SA stamp duty calculator shows the full scale band by band.
What the relief leaves untouched
Two charges survive. The first is the foreign ownership surcharge: 7 % of the value of any share acquired by a foreign person, charged on top of stamp duty and not covered by the first home relief. RevenueSA's worked example at $600,000 gives $26,830 of duty and $42,000 of surcharge, $68,830 in total. For a couple where one partner is foreign, the surcharge falls on that partner's share; the foreign buyer guide explains how shares are counted elsewhere.
The second is the occupancy condition. The property must become your principal place of residence for at least six continuous months, starting within twelve months. A plan to let a new apartment for its first year and move in afterwards would miss that window.
The grant that sits beside the relief
The First Home Owner Grant is a payment rather than a duty saving. In South Australia it is worth up to $15,000 for a new home and, since 6 June 2024, has no price cap either. It is not paid on vacant land purchased by itself. On a $700,000 new home, the duty relief saves $32,330 and the grant adds $15,000, which together approach $47,330 of support for one purchase.
Grant on a new home in your state
First Home Owner Grant
$15,000
| Duty on this new first home | $0 |
| Duty minus grant | -$15,000 |
| Duty rule | First home buyer relief: full, no value cap |
The grant calculator above opens on South Australia: enter your own price to see the grant against the duty, then switch to Queensland, which caps its grant on price, to see the difference.
Land now, house later
Buying a block to build on is covered by the duty relief at the time of the land purchase, assessed on the land price. The grant comes into play only for the home itself. A buyer paying $300,000 for land in a growth suburb north of Adelaide saves $11,330 in duty on the block. The vacant land guide compares how each state treats land bought by a first home buyer, several of which, unlike SA, still apply a value limit.
Where SA sits among the states
For a new home, South Australia is among the most generous jurisdictions: a first home buyer at $900,000 pays nothing here, $0 in Queensland, $19,594 in New South Wales and $49,070 in Victoria. For an established home the ranking flips. At $600,000 the SA buyer pays $26,830, where the same buyer in Victoria or New South Wales pays $0 and $0. The first home buyer comparison runs the eight jurisdictions for any price.
Downsizing seniors: a separate relief
South Australia also introduced a relief for people aged 60 and over, for contracts from 25 March 2026. It applies when a senior sells their principal place of residence and buys a new home, an off-the-plan apartment or land to build on, on a smaller block. The relief is worth up to $103,830, which is the duty this scale gives at $2,000,000. RevenueSA's notice sets out the conditions in more detail than we have verified, so the calculator does not model it; the pensioner and downsizer guide compares the states that still offer something.