By Tim McKibbin, REINSW CEO
Stamp duty is one of the biggest barriers to entry to the NSW property market.
The NSW Government currently provides stamp duty relief on properties with a sale price of $650,000 or less, and a sliding scale of stamp duty relief that diminishes proportionally between $650,000 and $850,000.
With the median house price and unit price in Sydney at $985,000 and $717,000, respectively, very few Sydney homebuyers are benefitting. While first homebuyers are struggling to enter the market, retirees are disincentivised to downsize because of the money they will lose in property taxes.
The few remaining options for NSW homebuyers are to move further away from Sydney, or move interstate where homeownership is still a reality.