First Home Owner Grant (FHOG)

By Andrew Paterson

The First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) puts $10,000 in your pocket when you buy or build a new home in Victoria. It’s one of several government grants and schemes available to Geelong home buyers – and unlike most of them, it’s actual cash you can use toward your purchase.

This guide covers everything you need to know about claiming the FHOG in Geelong and across Victoria: who qualifies, what properties are eligible, how to apply, and how to stack it with other benefits.

How much is the First Home Owner Grant in Victoria?

Victoria offers a flat $10,000 grant for new homes valued up to $750,000. This applies equally to metropolitan Melbourne, Geelong and regional areas – the regional bonus of $20,000 ended back in June 2021.

The grant is tax-free and paid as a lump sum, typically at settlement or your first construction progress payment. It’s not a loan – you don’t pay it back.

What counts as a “new home”?

This is where people often get caught out. The FHOG only applies to new homes – properties that have never been lived in or sold as a place of residence. That includes:

• Newly constructed houses, townhouses and apartments
• Off-the-plan purchases (settled after construction completes)
• Substantially renovated homes that haven’t been occupied since renovation
• Owner-builder constructions
• House and land packages

Established homes – even if they’re new to you – don’t qualify for the FHOG. If you’re buying an existing property, you can still access stamp duty concessions and other schemes, but not this grant.

Thinking about building? Our building loans page explains how construction finance works alongside grants like this.

FHOG eligibility criteria

To claim the grant, you need to tick every box:

Personal requirements:

• At least 18 years old
• Australian citizen or permanent resident (at least one applicant)
• Never previously received FHOG anywhere in Australia
• Never owned residential property in Australia before 1 July 2000
• If you owned property after 1 July 2000, you must not have lived in it for six continuous months or more

Property requirements:

• New home (as defined above)
• Total value no more than $750,000
• Located in Victoria

Residency requirement:

• At least one applicant must live in the property as their principal residence
• Continuously for 12 months minimum
• Starting within 12 months of settlement or construction completion

That last point matters. If you’re in the Australian Defence Force and enrolled to vote in Victoria, you’re exempt from the residency requirement – but everyone else needs to actually move in and stay.

The partner rule that catches people

Here’s a common scenario: you’ve never owned property, but your partner bought an apartment years ago and lived in it. Even if your partner isn’t on the new purchase, their history affects your eligibility.

If your spouse or domestic partner has:

• Previously received FHOG, or
• Owned and occupied property for six months or more after 1 July 2000

…then you’re both disqualified. You must declare your partner on the application regardless of whether they’re on the title.

The one exception: if your partner owned property after 1 July 2000 but never lived in it (purely an investment), you may still qualify. Worth checking with your broker or the State Revenue Office if you’re in this situation.

How to apply for the FHOG

Most people apply through their lender or mortgage broker – this is called lodging through an “approved agent.” It’s the easiest path because:

• The grant can be applied directly at settlement
• Your broker handles the paperwork alongside your loan application
• Processing happens in parallel with your finance approval

Alternatively, you can apply directly to the State Revenue Office Victoria after your purchase completes, via firsthome.gov.au. Direct applications are processed within about 10 working days.

Either way, you need to apply within 12 months of settlement or construction completion.

Documents you’ll need:

• Three identity documents per applicant (citizenship evidence, photo ID, proof of Australian residence)
• Signed contract of sale
• Certificate of occupancy (for new builds)
• Title search
• Vendor confirmation the property was never previously occupied

Stamp duty savings on top of the FHOG

The FHOG stacks with Victoria’s first home buyer stamp duty concessions. This is where the real savings add up:

Property Value	Stamp Duty
Up to $600,000	$0 (full exemption)
$600,001 – $750,000	Sliding scale concession
Above $750,000	Standard rates apply

Unlike the FHOG, stamp duty concessions apply to both new and established homes. So even if you’re buying an existing house and miss out on the $10,000 grant, you could still save tens of thousands in duty.

A first home buyer purchasing a $580,000 new townhouse in Geelong could receive:

• $10,000 FHOG
• ~$31,000 stamp duty exemption
• Over $41,000 in combined benefits

If you’re buying off-the-plan, the off-the-plan duty concession (extended to October 2026) can reduce your dutiable value further by excluding construction costs from the calculation.

Other schemes you can combine with FHOG

The FHOG is just one piece of the puzzle. Depending on your situation, you might also access:

First Home Guarantee – Buy with just 5% deposit and no Lenders Mortgage Insurance. From October 2025, there are unlimited places and no income caps. Geelong’s property price cap is $950,000 under this scheme.

Help to Buy – The federal shared equity scheme launched in December 2025. The government contributes up to 40% for new homes or 30% for existing homes, and you only need a 2% deposit. Can be combined with FHOG and stamp duty concessions.

Victorian Homebuyer Fund – This state shared equity scheme closed to new applicants in September 2025. If you were considering it, Help to Buy is now the main alternative.

First Home Super Saver Scheme – Withdraw voluntary super contributions (up to $50,000) for your deposit. Works alongside all the above.

For a complete rundown of what’s available, see our state and federal grants guide.

What if you’re an owner-builder?

Owner-builders can access the FHOG, but with extra requirements:

• You must hold title to the land
• Document the date foundations were laid (this establishes your “commencement date”)
• Obtain a certificate of occupancy
• Demonstrate at least $10,000 in building costs (excluding your own labour)

The same property value cap ($750,000) applies to the total value of land plus completed construction.

How Victoria compares to other states

Victoria’s $10,000 grant is now among the lower offerings nationally. If you’re flexible on location or curious how we stack up:

State/Territory	Grant	Property Cap
Northern Territory	$50,000	No cap
Queensland	$30,000	$750,000
Tasmania	$30,000	No cap
South Australia	$15,000	No cap
Victoria	$10,000	$750,000
NSW	$10,000	$600,000 – $750,000
Western Australia	$10,000	$750,000 – $1M
ACT	No FHOG	Stamp duty scheme instead

Queensland’s $30,000 grant runs until June 2026. Tasmania tripled theirs to $30,000 in December 2025. The Northern Territory’s $50,000 HomeGrown scheme continues until September 2026. South Australia removed property value caps entirely in 2024.

Recent changes affecting first home buyers

A few developments worth noting:

November 2025: Victoria amended legislation so New Zealand citizens no longer need a special category visa to qualify for FHOG. This takes effect for settlements from November 2026.

October 2025: The federal Home Guarantee Scheme expanded to unlimited places with no income caps – a significant change for first home buyers who were previously locked out.

December 2025: Federal Help to Buy launched, giving Victorian buyers a new shared equity option after the Victorian Homebuyer Fund closed.

No changes to FHOG itself: The $10,000 amount and $750,000 property cap have remained static since the regional bonus ended in 2021.

Putting it all together: a Geelong example

Say you’re buying a new $700,000 townhouse in Belmont. Here’s what you could access:

• FHOG: $10,000
• Stamp duty concession: ~$12,000 – $15,000 saved
• First Home Guarantee: Buy with 5% deposit ($35,000) instead of 20% ($140,000), skip LMI

Total benefit: potentially $50,000+ in grants, duty savings and avoided LMI.

Or if you’re on a lower income and want smaller repayments, you could use Help to Buy instead of the First Home Guarantee – the government contributes up to 40% and you only need 2% deposit. You’d still get the FHOG and stamp duty benefits on top.

The best combination depends on your income, deposit size and how much you want to borrow. That’s exactly the kind of thing we help people figure out.

What to do next

If you’re a first home buyer in Geelong wondering what you’re eligible for:

1. Check the basics – Do you meet the FHOG criteria? Is your target property under $750,000 and genuinely new?
2. Look at the full picture – FHOG is rarely the only benefit available. Stamp duty concessions, deposit schemes and shared equity programs often matter more to your total costs.
3. Get your numbers straight – Use our borrowing power calculator to see what you can afford, then our mortgage repayment calculator to understand ongoing costs.
4. Talk to someone – Every situation is different. Book a free lending strategy session and we’ll walk through exactly what grants and schemes apply to you, what the numbers look like, and the best path to your first home.

We help Geelong first home buyers navigate this every day. The grants and schemes can feel overwhelming, but they don’t have to be.