Pursuits
Foreign Home Buyers Face Stamp Duty Rise in Australian State
- Victoria state to double stamp duty on overseas buyers
- Land tax for absentee home owners will treble to 1.5 percent
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The Australian state of Victoria will more than double a property tax for foreign buyers in a move that may undermine surging home prices in the nation’s second-largest city.
The stamp duty surcharge will increase to 7 percent from 3 percent and will apply to contracts signed on or after July 1, according to a statement Friday from state Treasurer Tim Pallas. The state government said it will also increase a land surcharge on absentee owners to 1.5 percent from 0.5 percent.