Upper house member Stephen Lawrence has welcomed the state government's First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, saying it will have huge benefits for people in Dubbo.
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The launch of the scheme was announced on Friday, June 30, and coincided with premier Chris Minns' visit to Dubbo.
The premier and Mr Lawrence - who ran seventh on the Labor party's Legislative Council ticket at the last election - will visit a number of locations in Dubbo during the visit.
The First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme will come into effect on Saturday, July 1 and it replaces the previous government's land tax.
According to Labor, just five people in Dubbo opted for the annual land tax under the former government.
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The new scheme will lift the thresholds for stamp duty exemptions for first home buyers from $650,000 to $800,000 and stamp duty concessions from $800,000 to $1 million.
In Dubbo the medium house price is currently $530,760, meaning a saving of $18,674.
More than 95 per cent of sales in the Dubbo Local Government Area (LGA) during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 financial years were less than $1 million, and if that was to continue then the bulk of properties bought will be eligible for the new benefits.
"More first home buyers and families in regional NSW will be able to benefit from a more accessible, fairer and simpler program that saves them real money when they purchase their first home," Mr Lawrence said.
"Under the former government's forever land tax scheme, only five first home buyers took up the scheme in Dubbo. That number speaks volumes. 80% of the take up of the former government's scheme occurred in metropolitan Sydney. No government with a serious commitment to regional NSW would have accepted such a poor outcome.
"It is clear that this government understands there are serious housing affordability pressures in regional NSW and in Dubbo and is taking real and positive action on this issue.
"The Minns Labor Government has a comprehensive housing and rental reform agenda it is delivering for the benefit of communities in rural and regional New South Wales."
Premier Minns said his government wants to help people in regional areas.
"The new thresholds for stamp duty exemptions and concessions are a simpler and fairer way to help more first home buyers," he said.
"The former government's land tax scheme gave 50 per cent of the additional benefit to just 13 per cent of first home buyers.
"These changes will help five out of every six first home buyers to do just that and delivers a key election commitment to abolish the annual land tax, a forever tax on your own home."
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Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior sports journalist for Western NSW, covering all that's happening in in Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst and everywhere in between. Contact me at nick.guthrie@acm.media
