00:01The cost of stamp duty across the country has risen fivefold in the last 40 years to $45,000
00:08on average. The revenue is a boon for state and territory governments which all have different
00:14stamp duty rates and exemptions. Average payments in 2025 were $30,000 for Territorians and
00:21Tasmanians. South Australians were slugged a little more. Residents in the ACT, Victoria
00:26and WA paid just under $40,000. Queenslanders just over that, while those in New South Wales
00:32paid the most. And your feedback has told us that older Australians want to downsize to smaller homes
00:39with less maintenance and more suitable accommodation. But these transaction costs
00:45can be a deal breaker. Newly retired Paul Neura from Sydney's west has been living in his family home
00:50for 39 years. He's crunched the numbers and downsizing doesn't make sense.
00:56I think we've worked out around $50,000 to $60,000 stamp duty. And that's just a major blow to
01:04what
01:05we have in our super. 81-year-old Laurel has already started packing boxes, but she has nowhere to go.
01:12The cost of stamp duty alone is $52,000 just for a $1.2 million home.
01:20As a result, hamstrung downsizes in big homes are keeping stock off the market, contributing to the
01:26housing crisis. Conditional policy relief exists for some downsizes, but it's not universal. South
01:33Australia has dumped stamp duty for over 60s, but only if downsizes move into new homes, off-the-plan
01:39apartments or vacant land for a new build. The ACT provides concessions to eligible pensioners
01:45as it transitions to an annual land tax system. Victoria has concessions for homes worth up to
01:51$750,000 for eligible pensioners. While New South Wales last year scrapped any plans for reform,
01:58WA and Queensland don't currently offer any specific concessions for retirees,
02:03although other general stamp duty exemptions are on offer.
02:07The Australian Tax Office allows a downsizer to put up to $300,000 into their super from the
02:13proceeds of their home, but warns that can affect the age pension. A select committee on
02:18intergenerational housing inequality reports back later this year, while the Productivity
02:23Commission's final housing report is due early 2027.
02:27And we say to hear from about a hospital section who's joining the county we have increased
02:27assistance and distributed COMMUNITY on uh budget 1979. Last year, 2020 is updated as well for
02:29some of the foundsons to roll Barry's services. At this point of a prohibitedPA
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