NT Treasurer Bill Yan flags potential extension to Homegrown Territory Grants program

Only one person has taken a $50k grant to build a new home in Alice Springs, the Territory Treasurer’s revealed, but hundreds have applied to buy existing NT homes. Find out why.

Herron Todd White property valuer Peter Nichols and NT Treasurer Bill Yan in Kilgariff, south of Alice Springs, on April 3, 2025. Picture: Gera Kazakov

Whether or not a $50,000 grant to encourage first homebuyers to build gets a boost will be examined in a “an assessment” later this year, the Treasurer says, after only one person in Alice Springs received money for a new build since the grants were launched.

In light of 106 applications for the $50,000 first homebuyers grant, only one has taken up the money and used it to build in Ilparpa, Territory Treasurer Bill Yan revealed on Thursday.

Speaking in Kilgariff, a new housing estate located south of Alice Springs, Mr Yan when questioned if the $50k grant needed to be higher, he said an “assessment” would take place.

Herron Todd White property valuer Peter Nichols and NT Treasurer Bill Yan in Kilgariff. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“That’ll be an assessment we’ll need to do towards the end of the program and we need to make the decision, do we extend the program?” he said.

“And if we do, what does the program look like into the future? So we’re only eight months in, we’ll analyse the data as it comes through.”

At the inaugural NT Property Council State of the Market meeting in Alice Springs, held on March 28, ANZ NT district manager Sophia Dullaway said she had seen little uptake in the grants for first homebuyers.

“We’ve only had four people interested in the last six months for the $50k,” she said at the meeting.

High construction costs were stopping people from biting the bullet and trying to build a new home – despite the $50k up for grabs, she said at the time.

Mr Yan said there was a “shortage of trades” Territory-wide, with a “a large building program going on out in Bush with our remote power construction program” taking trades away from towns.

NT Treasurer Bill Yan talks to Herron Todd White property valuer Peter Nichols in Kilgariff. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“It’s a balance – we need to attract more tradies to town and if we can get that extra building happening, we can hopefully get some more tradies down to start that all important construction for new home builders,” he said.

Joining Mr Yan was Herron Todd White property valuer Peter Nichols, who said an average build time in the Territory was “in the range of 16 to 20 weeks”.

“These grants are a great incentive for first home builders and just to provide a helping hand to people looking at getting into their first property,” he said.

There have been 365 applications for the government’s $10k grants, while 38 people have applied for the $30k fresh start grant, all part of the Homegrown Territory grants program.

More than $5 million had been paid out so far through the grants, Mr Yan said.

The scheme is due to end in September, but Mr Yan flagged a potential extension, pending the Territory’s budget being handed down, and the completion of the “assessment”.