A Melbourne dad reveals how a $200,000 stamp duty bill forced his family to ditch moving plans and renovate instead. Picture: Mark Stewart
A Melbourne homeowner has revealed he would have been slugged with an “easily” $200k bill just to move house, forcing his family to renovate instead.
Northcote father Josef Tadich said stamp duty alone would have added a massive cost barrier if they chose to upgrade.
“Stamp duty alone would have been massive, easily around $200,000 by the time you buy and sell,” he said.
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“When you’re looking at that kind of cost, it really makes you stop and think.”
With median house prices in Northcote sitting well above $1.6m, Mr Tadich said the financial hit made moving difficult to justify, even before factoring in agent fees and other costs.
Instead, the family chose to renovate, adding a second storey with additional bedrooms to create more space.
The targeted build ran for about nine months and delivered what Mr Tadich described as “extra breathing room” without the need to re-enter the market.
Northcote father Josef Tadich admits a potential $200k “moving tax” made upgrading impossible, pushing his family to rethink their next step. Picture: Mark Stewart
“For us, doing a smaller renovation just made more financial sense,” he said.
“Trying to find a new place that ticked all the same boxes would’ve been difficult, and then you’re layering on all those extra costs.”
Mr Tadich said the key was keeping the project focused to avoid unnecessary blowouts.
“The big trap is scope creep,” he said.
“You start thinking, ‘We’ll just do this … and maybe that as well,’ and suddenly the budget blows out.”
The renovation was completed with a trusted local builder and stayed on track, with Mr Tadich describing the process as relatively smooth compared to expectations.
Instead of moving, the family added a second storey to create space, avoiding the massive costs tied to buying and selling. Picture: Mark Stewart
He said many families in a similar stage of life were now making the same call.
“A lot of people with kids getting older are choosing to upgrade what they’ve already got rather than uprooting everything,” he said.
“It’s just a more practical move for a lot of families.”
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