In short: After PR, a first home buyer in Western Australia can use the First Home Guarantee with a 5% deposit and no LMI (cap $850,000 in Perth, $600,000 elsewhere), pay no transfer duty up to $500,000 with a concession to $700,000 in Perth or $750,000 in regional WA, and claim the $10,000 First Home Owner Grant on a new home.
Key takeaways
- With PR you are no longer a foreign person: no FIRB approval, no 7% foreign buyer duty surcharge, and the established-dwelling ban (to at least 30 June 2029) no longer applies.
- The First Home Guarantee has no income cap; the WA caps are $850,000 for Perth and $600,000 for the rest of the state.
- WA's first-home-owner duty rate gives a full exemption to $500,000 and a concession to $700,000 in Perth or $750,000 in regional areas.
- The FHOG is $10,000 for a new home.
- Lenders treat some WA postcodes, especially mining towns and inner-city apartments, more conservatively. Check before you sign.
Perth's Nepali community has grown quickly on the back of nursing, aged care, mining-services and hospitality jobs, and WA's regional nomination stream has brought 491 families to Bunbury, Geraldton and the Goldfields. Compared with Sydney and Melbourne, entry prices are lower and the state's duty concession reaches further down the market. This guide sets out what a newly permanent Nepali household can access in WA and how to present a loan application that gets approved the first time.
WA's first home buyer rules in one table
| Scheme | Rule at the time of writing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| First Home Guarantee | 5% deposit, no LMI, no income cap; cap $850,000 Perth, $600,000 rest of WA | Citizens and PRs; owner-occupiers; no property owned in Australia in the last 10 years |
| First home owner rate of duty | Exempt to $500,000; concession $500,001 to $700,000 (Perth) or $750,000 (regional) | Established or new homes; residence conditions apply |
| First Home Owner Grant | $10,000 for a new home | New homes and house-and-land builds only |
| Foreign buyers duty surcharge | 7% | Foreign persons only; PRs exempt |
| Established-dwelling ban | Foreign persons blocked until at least 30 June 2029 | Not applicable to PRs, NZ citizens or spouses of citizens and PRs |
RevenueWA sets the state rules; see the RevenueWA pages on wa.gov.au. The Guarantee is administered by Housing Australia.
Worked example: a $650,000 house in Perth's south-east
A Nepali couple, one an enrolled nurse and the other a forklift operator, both permanent residents since March, buy an established three-bedroom house in Perth's south-eastern suburbs for $650,000 under the First Home Guarantee.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase price | $650,000 |
| Deposit (5%) | $32,500 |
| Loan | $617,500 |
| Transfer duty | Reduced under the first home owner concession (between $500,000 and $700,000); confirm the exact figure with RevenueWA's calculator |
| LMI | $0 (Guarantee) |
| Settlement agent, inspections, registration | Roughly $3,000 to $4,500 |
| Monthly repayment, for illustration at 6.00% p.a. over 30 years | About $3,702 |
If they found a villa or older house at $500,000 instead, duty would be nil and the loan would fall to $475,000, with repayments of about $2,848 a month on the same illustrative rate. That $150,000 difference in price changes the monthly figure by roughly $850, which is worth remembering when the Guarantee makes a bigger purchase possible: the scheme removes LMI, not the repayments.
For a new build, WA's FHOG of $10,000 applies and duty is assessed on the land alone if you sign separate land and build contracts. Perth's northern and south-eastern growth corridors are full of house-and-land packages within the $850,000 Guarantee cap. Model the options with the mortgage repayment calculator and the LMI calculator to see what the Guarantee is saving you.
Where Nepali families settle in WA
Perth's Nepali community is spread rather than clustered. The south-eastern suburbs around the Cannington and Thornlie rail corridor, the inner south near Curtin University, and the northern suburbs along the Joondalup line all have households, with Nepali grocers and momo kitchens dotted through the South Asian shopping strips. Hindu temples and Buddhist centres in the metropolitan area host Dashain, Tihar and Teej, and the state's Nepali associations run cultural programs, sports carnivals and Nepali language classes for children. Because WA is far from the eastern states, the community is tight and the association groups are a reliable source of suburb and school advice.
Regional WA draws 491 visa families to Bunbury, Busselton, Geraldton, Albany and Kalgoorlie. Prices there often fit inside the $600,000 regional Guarantee cap and the $750,000 regional duty concession, but lender policy on those towns differs, which is covered below. Our Perth and Western Australia pages have area notes.
Lender and document notes for new PR holders in WA
- Status. Passport and PR grant notice; the lender confirms it through VEVO. Mainstream lenders then apply standard policy: up to 95% LVR with the Guarantee, standard rates.
- Income. Fly-in-fly-out and mining-services rosters are common in the community. Lenders accept FIFO income but treat site allowances and overtime differently; some count 100%, some 80%. Nursing and aged-care shift penalties are similar. A two-year history smooths everything.
- Genuine savings. 5% held for three months with most lenders; rent paid on time can substitute with some. See genuine savings explained.
- Source of funds. Nepal Rastra Bank does not permit capital transfers from Nepal to buy property abroad, and every lender needs a lawful, documented source. Use Australian savings, gifts from family in Australia (with a gift letter) or NRN-compliant funds, and get legal advice on anything else.
- Postcode policy. Mining towns such as Karratha, Port Hedland and Kalgoorlie, and some high-density Perth apartment postcodes, carry lower maximum LVRs or are excluded from some lenders' Guarantee lending. This is the single biggest WA-specific reason to use a broker with a national panel.
- Credit file. Your Nepali history does not transfer. Keep Australian phone plans, utilities and buy-now-pay-later accounts spotless for at least six months.
- Buffer. Lenders assess at your rate plus 3 percentage points, and regular remittances in your statements count as living expenses.
Our low-deposit home loans page explains the Guarantee route and the alternatives, and the documents checklist lists everything to gather before pre-approval.
Frequently asked questions
Does the WA duty concession apply to established homes?
Yes. Unlike some states, WA's first home owner rate of duty applies to established homes as well as new ones: exempt to $500,000, then a concessional rate to $700,000 in Perth or $750,000 in regional WA. That makes an established house in an outer Perth suburb one of the cheaper first purchases in the country once duty is included.
I am on a 491 visa in Bunbury. Can I buy now?
As a temporary resident you can buy a new home or vacant land with FIRB approval and pay the 7% foreign buyer surcharge, but not an established home. Once your 191 permanent visa is granted you can buy anything, use the Guarantee and access the duty concession. Many families in your position sign a house-and-land contract before PR and settle after; our temporary resident guide explains the timing.
How does the $600,000 regional cap work?
The Guarantee's regional cap applies to purchases outside the Perth metropolitan area. If the house you want is $620,000 you cannot use the Guarantee, so you would need a 20% deposit, LMI, or a guarantor. In practice most regional WA houses fit inside the cap, and the duty concession still applies.
Can we combine the grant, the duty concession and the Guarantee?
Yes, on a new home under the caps. The $10,000 FHOG goes toward your contribution, duty is nil or reduced depending on price, and the Guarantee removes LMI. Each has its own residence condition, so plan to live in the home for at least 12 months.
Talk to GNT Finance
GNT Finance arranges home loans across Western Australia by phone, video and e-signature from our Melbourne office, in English, Nepali or Hindi. We know which lenders suit FIFO income, regional postcodes and new-PR files. Book a free consultation or call 0426 403 703; there is no cost to you for our home-loan service in most cases. If you are comparing states, see our Australia-wide, Sydney and Victoria pages.
This is general information, not migration, legal, tax or credit advice. Migration rules change often — confirm with a registered migration agent (MARA) or the Department of Home Affairs. Grant, duty and Guarantee figures are as at the time of writing; confirm them with RevenueWA and Housing Australia.
Written by Gorakh Timilsina
Founder, CEO & Senior Mortgage Consultant at GNT Finance. Gorakh started as a broker assistant, spent years as a senior credit officer assessing loan applications, and now helps Melbourne families get the right loan approved. English, Nepali and Hindi spoken.