HomeBuilder: Victorians claim $539m in federal government scheme as applications double

Victorians are set to claim more than half a billion dollars in federal government funds after applications for the $25,000 HomeBuilder grants scheme doubled in its final month.

As of January 1, a revised HomeBuilder scheme is offering $15,000 to those who meet eligibility criteria and sign a building contract before the end of March.

Treasury yesterday released final figures for the program in 2020, showing more than 75,000 applications for the uncapped scheme, despite the government initially projecting the $680m program would help about 27,000 Australian households.

Earlier Treasury figures show there had been 32,464 applications as of December 4.

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By the end of that month, Victoria accounted for 21,595 of the applications alone, with the state’s home builders expected to share a whopping $539.875m. The figures account for more than a quarter of the national total.

Treasury data shows 15,380 of the applications nationwide are for renovations, with the rest to build new homes.

Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar yesterday estimated the program would support $18bn in residential construction around Australia.

“On all counts HomeBuilder has more than achieved this objective, and it has kept hundreds of thousands of tradies in work who would have otherwise been facing the unemployment queue,” Mr Sukkar said.

“This is a phenomenal outcome for our tradies and for our economy at a time it needs it most.”

Property Council of Australia chief executive Ken Morrison said the program had proven the “workhorse of Australia’s recovery from the impact of COVID-19”.

He estimated it had supported hundreds of thousands of jobs and would create tens of billions of dollars of benefit to the national economy.

“Significantly, we are seeing record numbers of first-home buyers coming into the market, assisted by HomeBuilder and the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme,” Mr Morrison said.

In Victoria, the late surge is in part a result of homebuyer plans being delayed by Melbourne’s tough stage four lockdown.

Around the rest of the country, a decision late last year to give applicants six months to commence construction instead of the initially offered three months is thought to have helped drive demand.

Victorian homebuyers can now spend up to $850,000 on a home and still receive the grant, so long as their income does not exceed $125,000 as an individual, or $200,000 as a couple.

Renovations must be worth between $150,000 and $850,000 and not be completed at a home worth more than $1.5m to be eligible.

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