The South Australian government’s move to offer stamp duty exemptions for downsizers is reshaping the state’s housing market.
The South Australian state government has released early results from its stamp duty waiver for downsizers policy, confirming that the four‑year scheme is wiping tens of thousands of dollars off individual transactions while nudging buyers towards newly built homes and apartments.
Since the policy took effect on 25 March, 41 purchasers have qualified for a full stamp duty exemption, together avoiding more than $2.25 million in upfront tax.
On the government’s figures, that equates to an average saving of about $54,956 per transaction, with several additional applications in the queue expected to lift the total duty waived by close to another half a million dollars.
The concession is open to South Australians aged 60 and over who sell their existing residence and move into a smaller, newly built home or off‑the‑plan apartment priced at up to $2 million.
Seniors buying vacant land valued at up to $1.2 million, with the intention of constructing a new dwelling, also qualify.
Over the forward estimates, the state has set aside $75 million to fund the waiver, positioning it alongside broader measures aimed at easing housing pressures for specific cohorts, including first home buyers.
Developers see lift in downsizer inquiries
The government said feedback from industry suggested the policy was already influencing buyer behaviour.
Cedar Woods, the national developer behind major Adelaide projects such as Glenside, has reported that inquiries from potential downsizers have climbed by around 25 per cent since the policy was announced.
The company has so far sold 12 dwellings to purchasers planning to claim the waiver, with some three‑bedroom apartments delivering duty savings of up to $98,000 for eligible buyers.
Recycling larger homes back into the market
The government is framing the scheme as both a cost‑of‑living measure for older households and a way to unlock stock in tightly held suburbs.
It said that as seniors moved out of long‑held family homes and into properties better suited to their current needs, those larger dwellings would come back onto the market, creating additional options for first home buyers and growing families looking to upsize.
[Related: Building starts slide as housing targets slip further away]
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