What is transfer duty/stamp duty?
Transfer duty or stamp duty as it was previously known, is a
government tax levied on a number of different transactions. For
the purposes of this blog, we will be discussing transfer duty with
respect to transferring land or real property (real estate) during
the process of property purchase.
Transfer duty was previously known as stamp duty since the
transfer documents and contract of sale had to be
'stamped' as part of the assessment. It is
important to note that the transfer documents and Contract are
still required to be stamped and it is just the name that has
changed.
Aside from the actual cost of the property you are purchasing,
transfer duty is often one of the largest additional upfront costs
and is often overlooked by first home buyers. Therefore, it is
fundamental to know how much transfer duty you will be liable to
pay the Office of State Revenue when purchasing a property. The
amount will vary for each transaction
