Australian town offering people $20,000 to move in

An Aussie outback town is so keen to grow its population it’s offering $20,000 to entice residents to move there and help the region grow.

Quilpie is a tiny Queensland town in the middle of nowhere, 1000km west of Brisbane and close to the Northern Territory border.

With land prices available for under $20,000, the region is essentially giving away plots to newcomers willing to make the move to live in the desert.

Quilpie Shire Council first introduced its Home Owner Grant two years ago and offered a $12,500 grant for people who buy land and build in the region the same land size as Tasmania.

It now hopes increasing the scheme to $20,000 will boost the town’s population by 20 per cent to 1000.

‘We were the first council in Outback Queensland to introduce such a policy, and it was a huge success – we had interest from all around Australia as well as globally from the US, India and Ireland,’ council chief executive Justin Hancock told the Western Times.

‘Our new $20,000 grant will cover most of the price of their land if they build and live on it. 

The initial home grant scheme saw seven blocks of land sold, attracting new business to Quilpie.

It was also successful in luring a Japanese academic to the town.

To be eligible for the grant, residents must be new homeowners, build a new property worth less than $750,000 and live in Quilpie for at least six months.

Tessa McDougall and Tom Hennessy made the 1000km move to Quilpie from Brisbane  in 2021

Young couple Tom Hennessy and Tessa McDougall have no regrets about moving from Brisbane in 2021 as their city friends struggle with the property market.

He has taken up a job with the council while his partner is a teacher.

‘There’s probably not a lot of people our age who are getting into the property market – but it’s so affordable in Quilpie, and even more so with this great land grant, and we’re confident it’s going to be a great investment for our future,’ Mr Hennessy said.

‘It’s a great lifestyle and small town vibe, there’s no crime and everyone is pretty laid back.’

Quilpie (pictured) is 1000km west of Brisbane and is close to the Northern Territory border