Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon explains how first home buyers can break in to Cairns property market

New stamp duty concessions and big grants will give first-time Far North Queensland home buyers a better chance to own their own slice of paradise, according to the state Housing Minister.

Member for Mulgrave, Curtis Pitt and Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon inspect a home at Mount Peter, south of Cairns on Tuesday, June 25, along with prospective home owner, Jack White. Picture: Samuel Davis

New stamp duty concessions and big grants will give first time Far North Queensland home buyers a better chance to own their own slice of paradise, Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon says.

The Queensland government slashed stamp duty on homes worth up to 700,000 earlier this month and has doubled its First Home Owner Grant from $15,000 to $30,000.

But many economists and demographers, including Simon Kuestenmacher, who recently visited Cairns, argue that increasing home owner grants inflates prices across the housing market.

Low vacancy rates and the devastation caused by Tropical Cylcone Jasper has made finding a home in Cairns challenging for many residents.

Ms Scanlon said the grant’s impact on property prices would be mitigated by efforts to target Queenslanders entering the market for the first time.

“We want to make sure young Queenslanders get that leg up into the market,” she said.

“This isn’t designed for wealthy individuals who already own their own homes.

“That’s why our first home owners grant is specifically only for new builds.

“Our stamp duty threshold is for current existing stock and for new builds.

“We’ve been really careful to make sure this helps the right cohorts of people.”

Member for Mulgrave, Curtis Pitt, said the state government was working to increase housing supply in the region by recent funding $18.2m for trunk infrastructure in the Mount Peter region.

“This is the growth corridor of Far North Queensland,” Mr Pitt said.

“It’s really important that we continue to help developers who are trying to ensure that we get more housing stock available.”

The increased thresholds are expected to help 10,000 first home buyers a year.

“Our housing plan commits to building one million new homes and 53,500 social and affordable houses across the state,” Ms Scanlon said.

“It’s the biggest investment in Queensland’s history because we know how important this matter is for Queenslanders.”

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli unveiled the LNP’s housing plan in Redlynch last week as both parties work to ease the “feeding frenzy” at the bottom of the region’s housing market.

Originally published as Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon explains how first home buyers can break in to Cairns property market