First home buyers on the Mornington Peninsula: a step-by-step guide

Buying your first home on the Peninsula is very doable — you just need to know where to look and which government help applies to you.

1. Know what the state gives you

• No stamp duty up to $600,000. First home buyers in Victoria pay no transfer duty on a home valued up to $600,000, and reduced duty on a sliding scale up to $750,000.
• $10,000 First Home Owner Grant for a new home (including house-and-land and off-the-plan) valued up to $750,000.
• You (and your partner) must not have owned a home before, and you must live in it — the SRO sets out the residence rules.

On a $600,000 purchase the exemption alone saves the full duty bill. Run the numbers in our stamp duty calculator with the first-home-buyer box ticked.

2. Get pre-approval before you look seriously

Pre-approval tells you your real budget, and agents take you more seriously at inspections. Ask the lender about lenders mortgage insurance if your deposit is under 20 per cent, and about the federal Home Guarantee Scheme if you qualify.

3. Look where first homes actually are

On the Peninsula, entry-level houses are most often found in the Western Port towns — Hastings, Crib Point, Bittern — and in the inland streets of Capel Sound, Tootgarook and Rosebud. Units and townhouses in Mornington, Rosebud and Rye are the usual way into the bayside towns. New estates around Somerville are where the First Home Owner Grant most often applies.

4. Do the due diligence

• Read the Section 32 (vendor statement) — it lists title, zoning, overlays, rates and easements.
• Check overlays on VicPlan: bushfire, flooding and vegetation overlays affect building and insurance.
• Get a building and pest inspection, plus a septic inspection if the property isn't on mains sewer.
• Ask the agent for the Statement of Information — it shows their indicative price and comparable sales.

5. Buying at auction or by private sale

At auction there is no cooling-off period and you sign on the day, so finance and inspections must be done beforehand. On a private sale you generally get three business days to cool off (with a small penalty). Ask a conveyancer to read the contract before you sign either way.

6. Set an alert

Good first homes go quickly. Save a search with your top price and suburbs and REMP will email you the day something new lists.

Sources

• State Revenue Office: first home buyers
• State Revenue Office: land transfer duty
• Consumer Affairs Victoria: buying and selling property

Rules and thresholds were checked in October 2026. They change — confirm with the source before you sign anything.