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Helping cover stamp duty costs is just one way to encourage teachers into regional NSW, the government has explained.
Teachers are being encouraged to live and work in regional NSW via a $10,000 stamp duty refund incentive, the NSW government announced on Wednesday (8 February).
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Post-relocation — albeit into select areas of NSW — those teachers who buy a home “in their new school community” will be eligible for the $10,000 payment, it explained.
With the 25 March state election approaching, the idea is that this payment will help relocating teachers offset their stamp duty commitment, but this will not preclude them from other government home buying entitlements.
The NSW government has confirmed that teachers who are first home buyers already receive stamp duty relief under the NSW Coalition’s First Home Buyer Assistance scheme and the First Home Buyer Choice scheme, but that they may receive an additional $10,000 under the First Home Owner Grant scheme.
Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW, Paul Toole, said the government is “committed to removing barriers” for teachers and helping them “make the move to a country town”.
“Regional, rural and remote communities are an incredible place to live, work, and raise a family,” Mr Toole said.
“That is why we are providing additional support to help cover the costs of teachers moving to our communities, and support to help them buy a home so they can put down roots.”
Becoming part of the community
Treasurer Matt Kean said the stamp duty incentive was another way to attract teachers to the regions and help them buy their dream home.
“Teachers will be able to claim back up to $10,000 in stamp duty, helping them buy a home close to where they work,” Mr Kean said.
“This is another incentive for teachers to take up a position in the bush on top of other first home buyer assistance.”
Minister for Education and Early Learning, Sarah Mitchell, said offering additional support for teachers after they’ve relocated was the logical next step.
“Once we’ve helped a teacher move to a regional, rural or remote school, we need to do everything we can to make sure they become part of the community,” Ms Mitchell said.
Ms Mitchell added that a new Support for Rural Beginners program has also been introduced to provide hundreds of “early career” teachers with access to a range of supports to help them settle into their community and “make local connections”.
“We want to reduce the level of social isolation experienced by new teachers who have moved to the country and improve retention by encouraging them to build a sense of belonging in their communities,” Ms Mitchell said.
“The program includes a one-off financial incentive of $600 to be used towards building social connections such as registering with a local sporting team, signing up for art classes or even having coffee with new friends.”
Details revealed in rural education push
According to the government, eligibility for the program involves teachers being within “their first five years in the classroom” and have recently moved to teach in a regional, rural, or remote school in select NSW ‘principal networks’.
These include Barwon, Deniliquin, Far West, Griffith, Gundagai, Mitchell, Mooki, Narrandera, Temora, Wagga Wagga, West Wyalong, Western Plains as well as selected Connected Communities schools, it confirmed.
Expressions of interest (EOI) in the program are currently open on the Support for Rural Beginners Program launch page, the government highlighted.
It also outlined that NSW has “the most comprehensive” rural and remote incentives scheme in Australia and subject to eligibility, teachers can access up to $40,000 on top of their base salary annually, plus an additional $20,000 recruitment bonus.
Other initiatives include the NSW Liberal and Nationals government having invested more than $20 million in teacher housing in priority areas, it added.
“In 2022, the incentives program supported 1,700 teachers in regional, rural, and remote schools,” the government confirmed.
[Related: Accountants urge home buyers to weigh cost of dodging stamp duty]
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