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A $700,000 investment house in Melbourne attracts $37,070 in land transfer duty. The same $700,000 purchase in Brisbane costs $24,525 in transfer duty under Queensland's scale. That is a $12,545 difference on day one, before you have collected a single week of rent.

Investors who do not run the duty number across states before settling on a market are leaving five figure sums on the table for no reason other than habit. Multiply that gap across a five property portfolio and the wrong state choice costs you about $63,000 of working capital that should have been your sixth deposit.

This post walks the FY 2025 to 26 numbers across all eight Australian jurisdictions, shows the bracket by bracket calculation, and flags the small print rules that catch investors who copy a calculator output from one state to another.

What Stamp Duty Is and Why It Matters More Than You Think#

Stamp duty is a state level tax on property transfers, charged on the dutiable value of the property, usually the higher of the contract price and the market value. It is paid once, by the buyer.

It is not deductible against your income tax. The duty rolls into the cost base of the property and reduces your eventual capital gain on sale. That is a deferred benefit at best, and worthless if you never sell.

The brutal reality of stamp duty:

• It is the largest cost in a property purchase that you never get back
• It is not lendable: every dollar comes from your own cash
• It can be 85% higher in one state than another on the same purchase price
• It cannot be offset by negative gearing
• The cost base benefit only applies on sale, decades later

The duty rates are different in every state, the thresholds are different in every state, the foreign buyer surcharges are different in every state, and the concessions are different in every state. There is no national rule. Treat it as eight separate calculations.

Bracket by Bracket Calculations Across the Eight Jurisdictions#

Below are the transfer duty calculations on a $700,000 investment property purchase, using FY 2025 to 26 rates. These figures assume a standard residential investment purchase by an Australian resident individual, no first home concessions, no off the plan concession.

NSW: $25,912#

NSW transfer duty uses a sliding scale that gets steeper at higher price points:

QLD: $24,525 (saves $1,387 against NSW)#

Queensland sits just below NSW at this price. The two states are much closer than most investors assume:

VIC: $37,070#

Victoria runs the steepest curve. The same $700,000 investment property:

Victoria's 6.0% rate starting at $130,001 is what makes Melbourne the most expensive mainland capital to acquire investment property. Combined with Victoria's $50,000 land tax threshold, holding metro Melbourne investment property is structurally more expensive than holding equivalent Brisbane or Adelaide stock.

SA: $32,330#

WA: $27,265#

Western Australia sits between NSW and South Australia on duty at this price:

TAS: $26,748#

Tasmania sits in the middle of the pack. Lower entry band rates than NSW but a steeper top tier.

ACT: $20,040#

The ACT is in the middle of a long reform that replaces stamp duty with annual rates over time. For an investor in FY 2025 to 26, conveyance duty is $20,040 on $700,000, the lowest of the eight, but the property then attracts higher annual charges.

NT: $34,650#

The NT has no foreign surcharge but a high general rate: 4.95% of the whole price above $525,000.

The Full State by State Summary#

The QLD against VIC gap on a $700,000 transaction is $12,545. On a $900,000 transaction it is $15,545. These are not rounding errors. They are five figure swings on a single decision.

The Foreign Buyer Surcharge, Stacked on Top#

If you hold the property in a foreign trust, a foreign controlled company, or as a foreign person, the surcharge layer applies on top of the general duty.

A foreign buyer in NSW pays $25,912 + $63,000 = $88,912 of duty on a single $700,000 purchase. That is 12.7% of the purchase price gone to the revenue office before any other costs.

This is why so many trust structures involving offshore beneficiaries get unwound: the duty bill alone is enough to ruin the investment case. If you are a permanent resident or Australian citizen, none of this applies.

Worked Example: $200,000 Cash Deployed Two Different Ways#

A Sydney based investor on $145,000 income wants to deploy $200,000 of equity into a new investment, with a 20% deposit.

Scenario A: Buy a $700,000 house in Melbourne#

• Purchase price: $700,000
• Victorian land transfer duty: $37,070
• Legal and inspections: $2,500
• Loan establishment: $700
• LMI (80% LVR, no LMI): $0
• Total acquisition cost: $740,270
• Cash deployed: $180,270 (deposit plus costs)

Remaining cash buffer: $200,000 less $180,270 = $19,730.

Scenario B: Buy a $700,000 house in Brisbane#

• Purchase price: $700,000
• Queensland transfer duty: $24,525
• Legal and inspections: $2,500
• Loan establishment: $700
• LMI: $0
• Total acquisition cost: $727,725
• Cash deployed: $167,725

Remaining cash buffer: $200,000 less $167,725 = $32,275.

The cumulative effect across 5 properties#

If the same investor builds a 5 property portfolio over 8 years, choosing Queensland over Victoria for all five purchases at $700,000 each saves:

5 x $12,545 = $62,725 in cumulative stamp duty.

That $62,725 is approximately the deposit and costs on a small sixth property, or a cosmetic renovation across the portfolio. It is not a marginal optimisation. It is a structural advantage that compounds.

And if your choice is between Sydney and Brisbane, duty should barely enter it. At $700,000 the gap is $1,387.

Where Investors Get This Wrong#

Mistake 1: Forgetting the dutiable value rule#

Stamp duty is on the higher of contract price or market value. If you buy from a related party at a discount, the revenue office will value the property at market and charge duty on that. The discount does not reduce the duty.

A father selling a $1,200,000 house to his daughter for $800,000 means the daughter pays duty on $1,200,000, not $800,000. The discount transfers as a gift but the duty is fully charged.

Mistake 2: Assuming off the plan concessions are the same everywhere#

They are not. Victoria has a temporary off the plan concession that is open to every buyer, investors included, for strata apartments, units and townhouses. It covers contracts signed from 21 October 2024 and, as at December 2025, was due to end on 21 October 2026. It lets you deduct construction costs incurred after the contract date from the value that duty is charged on. A house and land package does not qualify the same way, and other states have their own, narrower rules.

Check the rule for the exact state and property type before you sign. An investor who assumes a concession and does not get it finds out at settlement.

Mistake 3: Buying through a related party trust without modelling the duty#

Transferring a property from your name into a discretionary trust triggers duty in every state, typically full duty charged on market value. A $1.2 million property moved into a trust in NSW costs $48,412 in duty for nothing more than a name change on the title.

This is the cost most people learn too late. The trust structuring decision needs to be made before the first purchase, not after.

Mistake 4: Underestimating the cash impact#

Stamp duty is not lendable. Every dollar of duty is cash out of your equity position. On a five property portfolio, the difference between Queensland and Victoria adds up to roughly $63,000 of cash that either becomes your sixth deposit or is gone.

When To Pay More Stamp Duty Anyway#

There are cases where the higher duty state is the right call despite the cost. Three specifically:

1. The growth case is materially stronger. If a $700,000 inner Melbourne house grows faster than a $700,000 outer Brisbane house, the extra growth can recover the duty difference within a few years and outperform after that. Model both before you choose.
2. You already hold significant assets in the lower duty state. Land tax aggregation rules mean adding another Queensland property to a portfolio already at the threshold pushes you into higher land tax brackets. Sometimes the right move is to spread across states regardless of duty.
3. The property is rare. Some specific properties (heritage, water frontage, suburbs with almost no supply) have growth profiles that justify a higher duty cost. These are rare, and the test is whether you can defend the call in writing.

What Sticks With You#

Stamp duty is the single largest cost in a property purchase that you never recover. The only optimisation available is choice of state and choice of structure. Both decisions get made before you sign, not after.

Run the Stamp Duty Calculator for the exact state, price, and resident status you are dealing with. Two minutes there saves you having to walk away from a deal at settlement because your budget was $15,000 short.

Stack the duty number alongside the Borrowing Power Calculator to confirm you have the cash and serviceability to complete. The number of investors who exchange contracts before checking the LVR maths is alarming.

For broader market context that brings state choice into a strategy, see our property investment strategy 2026 guide. For how stamp duty interacts with your eventual capital gain, see our reduce capital gains tax guide.

Frequently Asked Questions#

Is stamp duty tax deductible for investors?#

No. Stamp duty on the acquisition of a residential investment property is a capital cost that forms part of the cost base under Division 110 of ITAA 1997. It reduces your eventual capital gain on disposal but is not claimable in the year you incur it.

When do I pay stamp duty?#

Stamp duty is payable to the revenue office of the relevant state. Your conveyancer will typically arrange the lodgement and payment as part of the settlement process. The deadline differs by state, so confirm it with your conveyancer when you sign.

Can I include stamp duty in my home loan?#

Generally no. Lenders calculate the LVR on the purchase price, and stamp duty must be funded from your own cash. A small number of cash out refinances allow acquisition costs to be added to a larger loan, but only if the resulting LVR sits within policy. This is why the cash position matters more than the borrowing capacity for many first time investors.

Does the foreign surcharge apply if I am an Australian citizen living overseas?#

Generally no. Australian citizens are not foreign persons for the surcharge, wherever they live. Permanent residents are usually not foreign persons either, but the residence tests differ by state, so check the rule for the state you are buying in.

Are first home buyer concessions available in every state?#

Concessions exist in every state but the thresholds, eligibility, and benefit amounts differ. They are for people who will live in the home and do not apply to investors. As at December 2025: NSW gives a full exemption up to $800,000, Victoria up to $600,000, and Queensland charges no duty on a new home for eligible first home buyers, with a full concession on established homes up to $700,000. If you are buying as an investor, assume full duty applies.

Figures corrected on 5 October 2026. An earlier version of this post understated Queensland duty and misstated several other states. All figures above are the rates that applied in December 2025, when this post was first published.

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