Young Queenslanders’ dreams smashed as they are priced out in the Toowoomba housing crisis
First-home buyers battling the cost-of-living crisis can no longer afford to buy their first home, and those that can are being handed another tax hit by the State Labor Government after it was revealed the number of stamp duty concessions in Queensland has collapsed.
New analysis of the First Home Buyer Transfer Duty Concessions found declines in Toowoomba in the last 12 months and since Labor came to office in 2015. The number of first-home buyer transfer duty concessions fell by 14% in the last year and 6% since the 2014-15 financial year.
Across Queensland, the annual change dropped 26% and by 20% since 2014-2015.
If a first-home buyer purchases a home below $500,000 they are exempt from stamp duty.
The threshold has not moved since 2012, despite the average house price in Queensland reaching $798,000.
It comes as Queensland sits on the bottom of the national homeownership ladder at 63.5%.
Shadow Treasurer and Shadow Minister for Home Ownership David Janetzki said more young Queenslanders had paid stamp duty on their first home.
“10 years of this State Labor Government has ruined the homeownership aspirations of thousands of young Queenslanders,” Mr Janetzki said.
“When the State Labor Government was elected in 2015, first home buyers could comfortably afford a home in most suburbs, free from the burden of stamp duty.
“Now, it is almost impossible to find a home under the threshold, and those who can are slugged tens of thousands of dollars in extra tax. “This data is exactly why helping Queenslanders realise their dream of owning a home is a priority for the LNP.
“The LNP has a bold plan to take Queensland from last to first on the homeownership ladder in 10 years and it can only happen with first home buyers.
“We are considering all options to help Queenslanders into home ownership, including boosting land supply, incentives, and tax relief.
“Aspirational homeowners have been forgotten because of a decade of poor planning and the chaos and crisis that has engulfed the State Labor Government.
“Only the LNP has the right priorities for Queensland’s future.”
First Home Buyer Transfer Duty Concessions
Region | 2014-15 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | Annual Change | Change since 2014-15 |
Toowoomba | 686 | 747 | 644 | -14% | -6% |
Queensland | 21,203 | 23,007 | 16,950 | -26% | -20% |
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