Ang Kalatas Volume V April 2015 Issue | Page 17

THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 5 Number 7 | APRIL 2015 17 PROPERY MARKET HEALTH Restore First Home Owner Grant for existing housing I echo and support the Real Estate Institute of Queensland for its call for the reinstatement of first home owner grants (FHOG) for existing housing. I am also urging the state government of NSW to support it and, in addition, to restore the stamp duty concession too. This will help thousands to realise their dream of home ownership and progress from renting. The First Home Owner Grant for existing housing were abolished in 2012. The scheme has instead only been available and limited to purchasers of new property. Since then, first home owner rates experienced a marked decline and coincidentally the property investor rates experienced a marked increase. The current two-tiered system favouring one class of homebuyer over another has simply resulted in many potential first home buyers being locked out of the residential real estate market. This change created long-term tenants that would have purchased their first home had the grants still exist and therefore freeing up more REAL ESTATE MADE EASY DOM MELLA [email protected] rental property available for the new batch of tenants. There was no sound basis for the preferential treatment which currently exists for purchasers of newly built properties. The only reason given by the authorities is, new home creates more economic activities. We acknowledge there is a need to create more housing supply, but first home owners shouldn’t be limited in their choice as they are, under the current system. On the contrary, I believe giving grants to first home buyers purchasing existing homes will not stop or hinder but instead complement these activities as there will always be lots of buyers, including investors, who would prefer new property. Reinstating of the grants will help create more sales turnover and would also unlock millions of dollars in investment, thus triggering more economic activities and delivering an important boost to the nation’s economy. There needs to be a level playing field for all first home buyers. This is an important issue out there in the community. We believe it was a short-sighted move. There’s a real opportunity now to put it right with the reinstatement of a more evenhanded scheme. For free advice or further information contact Dom on 8887 5400 or 0403 226 169. Dom Mella is the Principal/ Licensee of Ray White Rooty Hill. He’s also a qualified accountant with background in Finance & Investments. He’s been in real estate business since 1999. Guarantor Loans…Buying your first property without having to wait for enough deposit W ith Sydney and Melbourne property markets going berserk it is getting much harder for Australians to save for a deposit to buy their first property. Sydney’s average home price is creeping into the $1Million mark and it is no wonder ‘guarantor loans’ is becoming frequent. Many Banks allow a family member to help people buy a home by providing additional property. The person providing this assista