Melbourne real estate agent pleads guilty to First Home Owner Grant offences
A Melbourne real estate agent was ordered to serve 200 hours of community services after illegally claiming a First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) despite already owning a home, according to the State Revenue Office (SRO) of Victoria.
The man pleaded guilty to the First Home Owner Grant Act 2000 and Tax Administration Act 1997. His legal team told the court that he was unclear about what he was doing and the repercussions of his actions. The magistrate dismissed this claim due to the nature of the man’s occupation.
The man first bought a property in St Kilda in 2005 and received the FHOG. The grant was later reclaimed after the SRO found he did not meet the residency requirements.
In 2009, he purchased a second property in Chadstone and applied unsuccessfully to receive the FHOG. The SRO rejected the application on the basis that he had not repaid the FHOG for his St Kilda property.
After repaying that amount, he once again applied for the FHOG. During this period he acquired another property in Moorabbin. When SRO investigators questioned the purchase of this property, he provided a statutory declaration stating the Moorabbin property was for investment purposes and he had never lived there.
Upon receipt of this declaration, he was then paid a $16,000 FHOG.
The SRO conducted further investigations and found that the man once again did not meet the residency requirements to receive a FHOG.
The court heard that the man was extremely sorry and had learned an important lesson from his actions. He was then sentenced without conviction to a 24-month community correction order that requires him to perform 200 hours of community work, amongst other conditions. He was also ordered to pay an extra $203.60 of out-of-pocket costs to the SRO within a month.
