Scott Morrison says three-month HomeBuilder grant extension will keep ‘tradies on the tools’

New home builders or renovators rushing to access a HomeBuilder grant before the end of the year have been given a three-month reprieve under changes to the Morrison Government stimulus scheme. While the value of the grant will decrease from $25,000 to $15,000, the property price cap for new builds in WA will remain at $750,000. In a move welcomed by industry groups, the Federal Government is also extending the construction start deadline from three to six months for all eligible contracts signed on or after June 4. The Government anticipates the extension to March 31 will support the construction or major rebuild of about 15,000 additional homes while also easing any bottlenecks in applications. It comes after the McGowan Government last month expanded eligibility criteria for WA’s $20,000 building bonus grant. Under the change to the State scheme, people building a new home now have one year from the time their contract is signed to start construction, instead of six months. But the deadline for eligible customers to sign contracts remains unchanged, at December 31. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Home-Builder, which had been announced as part of the economic recovery plan for Australia, had helped protect the jobs of one million Australians employed in the construction sector. “It’s critical we keep the momentum up for Australia’s economic recovery,” he said. “Extending HomeBuilder will mean a steady pipeline of construction activity to keep tradies on the tools.” Under the existing scheme, owner-occupiers wanting to build a new home, substantially renovate an existing home or buy an off-the-plan home have until December 31 to apply for a grant worth $25,000. The changes will mean eligible owner-occupier buyers will receive a $15,000 HomeBuilder grant for all new build contracts signed between January 1 and March 31 next year. The step down in value of the grant was in response to signs the economy was recovering, while the increase in home price points in NSW and Victoria reflected similar changes in the two states. Property price caps for new builds in NSW have been increased from $750,000 to $950,000 and in Victoria from $750,000 to $850,000. For renovators, the cost of works must be valued at between $150,000 and $750,000, with the dwelling not valued at more than $1.5 million before the makeover. Government figures show the scheme to date is expected to support about 27,000 homes across Australia with the three-month extension to increase the number to 42,000. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said supporting the housing sector was vital because it “is worth $100 billion a year to the Australian economy or around 5 per cent of GDP and more than a million people are employed in the sector across Australia”. Housing and Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar said the most recent data showed HomeBuilder was on track to exceed expected take-up levels.