A program to incentivise investors to provide affordable rental properties at below-market rates, lifting the general and first home buyer stamp duty thresholds, and an incentive scheme to encourage investors to install solar panels on rental properties are among the measures REIWA is asking the WA Government to consider in the 2027-28 Western Australian Budget.
REIWA President Rob Mandanici said the Institute’s proposals were aimed at improving the rental experience and pathways into home ownership.
“The market is still experiencing a range of challenges,” he said.
“From a buyer’s point of view, although prices are now declining, strong price growth over the past few years has made purchasing a property increasingly expensive. It is even more costly for first home buyers who also need to save a deposit.
“For non-first home buyers, the REIWA Perth median house sale price has been above the highest stamp duty bracket since October 2024. The purchaser of a house at Perth’s median sale price in January 2020 would have paid $16,815.00 in stamp duty. The buyer of a house at Perth’s median sale price as at August 2026 would have paid $40,550.50.
“This is a huge increase. It makes buying a new home an expensive transaction and affects movement within the market. In a 2025 reiwa.com Housing Issues Survey, 63 per cent of respondents reported stamp duty was a significant barrier to downsizing. For many potential downsizers, many of whom are living in large family homes, the prospect of paying tens of thousands of dollars in upfront transaction costs is a clear deterrent and the alternative is to remain where they are.
“We’re asking for the stamp duty thresholds to be increased to reflect bracket creep due to price growth. As well as helping buyers in general, it may facilitate downsizing and create some much-needed mobility within the market.”
Mr Mandanici said REIWA was also asking for the First Home Owner Rate of Duty (FHOR) thresholds to be increased to reflect current market conditions.
“The concessional FHOR is intended to be a mechanism to help first home buyers get a foot on the property ladder,” he said.
“However, both the REIWA Perth median house sale price ($960,000) and lower quartile ($820,000) as at August 2026 were above the $600,000 threshold below which no duty is payable.
“Further, in the year to August 2026, only 8.2 per cent of dwelling sales in Greater Perth were below the duty-free threshold and houses accounted for just 15 per cent of those sales. Affordability is also a challenge in regional WA. In Busselton, the lower quartile was $910,000, significantly above the current duty-free threshold.
“As a result, fewer first home buyers can take advantage of these concessions.
“REIWA recognises the FHOR thresholds were increased in May 2026, but strong price growth quickly rendered this obsolete.
“We acknowledge the number of property sales is declining and our requests will impact taxation revenue, but the WA Government has benefited from a stamp duty windfall over the past few years, and its revenue forecasts have already factored in a decline in the number of sales and prices. Changing the thresholds may also encourage more sales and mitigate the impact of interest rate increases.”
Improving the rental experience
REIWA’s Pre-budget submission seeks a number of measures to improve the rental experience for tenants.
“The rental market remains extremely constrained,” Mr Mandanici said.
“Rent prices are at record highs, rental affordability is at record lows, the vacancy rate is below 2 per cent and rental supply has not returned to pre-COVID moratorium levels on a per capita basis.
“While affordability is a challenge for many tenants, it is greater for households that earn slightly above social housing income limits and do not qualify for current assistance programs.
“REIWA is requesting the Government establish a new pilot program incentivising investors to provide affordable housing at below-market rates. Ideally, this would include wraparound training and support services provided by REIWA where needed.
“This would build on programs the Government has run previously, such as the Rental Pathways Scheme and the Assisted Rental Pathways Pilot.”
REIWA is also asking the Government to introduce an incentive scheme for investors to install solar and battery systems on their rental properties, helping ease cost of living pressures for tenants.
“A 2024 Australian Housing Conditions Data Infrastructure Survey showed just over half of home owners had access to solar panels compared with less than one in five tenants,” Mr Mandanici said.
“We welcome the Government’s recent decision to legalise plug-in solar for rental properties, although we note there are a number of practical issues that need to be addressed. However, we think the Government could go further.
“A number of states have already rolled out incentive schemes, encouraging investors to install solar in their investment properties. We would like to see WA do the same.
“For example, Queensland has the ‘Supercharged Solar for Renters’ program which provides eligible investors with rebates of up to $3,500 to install solar on their rental properties. New South Wales operates the ‘Home Energy Saver’ program. This provides investors and home owners with loans of up to $15,000 for a range of energy efficiency upgrades including rooftop solar, batteries and switchboard upgrades.
“The Victorian government provides solar rebates up to $1,400 to eligible landlords for the installation of solar panel systems on a maximum of two rental properties each financial year.”
REIWA is seeking further measures to improve costs and the rental experience for tenants.
“REIWA would like to see the WA government allow tenants to lodge their rental bonds directly with the Bond Administrator. This would reduce the risk of cyber crime and create a more efficient process,” Mr Mandanici said.
“We are also suggesting a bond portability scheme to allow tenants to transfer their bond between eligible tenancies in exchange for a small fee, similar to the new scheme recently introduced in Victoria.
“To support these recommendations, we are seeking the allocation of sufficient resources to the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety (LGIRS). We know from recent experience what can happen when a new program is introduced without appropriate funding.
“REIWA supported the launch of the new bond disposal and determinations process. However, the large number of disputes entering the new process has substantially exceeded the number of bond disputes that historically went to court. Insufficient resourcing is not delivering timely outcomes for tenants or investors. Some tenants who move to another rental property are facing lengthy delays in receiving their bond refund, which is placing further pressure on already stretched budgets.
“We are therefore seeking additional resources for LGIRS to allow the high volumes of bond determinations to be processed more quickly.”
Mr Mandanici said REIWA already worked closely with the Government and several government departments and appreciated the opportunity to present its ideas through the Pre-budget submission.
“We always welcome the chance to work with Government and represent our members’ views and experiences, and the Pre-budget process is a valuable opportunity to do that,” he said.
“We hope to see some of these proposals reflected in next year’s State Budget.”
