Stuart Zullo 
We all know that our stamp duty is designed to be a progressive tax system – the more you spend on a house, the more stamp duty you pay. Of course this system makes perfect sense. But what happens when house prices rise, forcing first home buyers into a higher bracket? They end up paying a stamp duty tax that was meant for the wealthy, of course. Concerned yet?
This phenomonen is commonly known as ‘bracket creep’, and it’s proving more and more lucrative for the NSW government as our house prices continue to head north. Our friends form Smartline Personal Mortgage Advisers have pointed out a few jaw dropping facts that we thought we’d share with you about the current state of NSW stamp duty.
1. The average amount of stamp duty paid by each residential property buyer over the 2012/13 financial year was $20,647. If you compare this to the average stamp duty paid in 2005/06 of just $14,471, we’ve seen an increase of $6,175 per property in just 7 years. Does this concern you?
2. The NSW government have pocketed an additional $577,580,193 in residential property stamp duty this financial year compared to last financial year. Any alarm bells going off yet?
3. 10% more properties were sold in the 2012/13 year compared to 2011/12, however stamp duty collections grew by 17%. Yes, we agree, something is most definitely not right about this!
We firmly believe our NSW stamp duty is becoming something of a joke. When our Liverpool real estate market is thriving, interest rates are low and everybody is feeling optimistic, our NSW government must be well and truly rubbing their hands together with glee as they watch the cash roll in.
Let us know your thoughts – Is NSW stamp duty too high for the average wage earner in Liverpool?