Builder deposits: Western Australia
The limit here is 6.5% of the contract price, for contracts between $7,500 and $500,000. What is true everywhere — and why the cap is not the protection — is on the main page.
Western Australia is the only jurisdiction whose deposit cap is not a round number, and the only one whose cap has a ceiling above which it stops applying.
Six and a half per cent — between $7,500 and $500,000
The limit is 6.5% of the contract price, set under the Home Building Contracts Act 1991. But the Act only governs contracts valued between $7,500 and $500,000. Below and above that band it does not apply, and there is no statutory limit on the deposit at all.
That upper boundary matters more every year. A new detached house in Perth can pass $500,000 without being remarkable, and the moment a contract does, the protection described on this page stops — not gradually, but entirely. If your contract is near that figure, establish which side of it you are on before you discuss a deposit, because it changes whether there is a rule to point at.
What the insurance will actually return
Home indemnity insurance covers the loss of a deposit only up to $20,000. On a contract at the top of the Act's range, 6.5% is $32,500 — so even a perfectly lawful deposit can sit well above what the cover would return. The lawful amount and the recoverable amount are two different numbers here, and the second one is the one that matters if the builder fails.
Western Australia: the numbers
- Maximum deposit
- 6.5% of the contract price
- The cap applies to contracts
- Between $7,500 and $500,000
- Outside that range
- The Home Building Contracts Act 1991 does not apply, so no statutory deposit limit
- Off-site cabinetry over half the contract value
- 20% maximum deposit
- Home indemnity cover for a lost deposit
- Capped at $20,000
Read from Building and Energy, Building or renovating your home on 13 October 2026. We publish the date we read it so you can see how old this is — these limits change, and Building and Energy is the authority on what applies to your contract.
Questions about Western Australia deposits
What is the maximum deposit in WA?
6.5% of the contract price under the Home Building Contracts Act 1991 — but only for contracts valued between $7,500 and $500,000.
What if my contract is over $500,000?
The Act does not apply, so there is no statutory deposit limit. The protection stops entirely rather than tapering, so establish which side of $500,000 you are on before discussing a deposit.
How much of a lost deposit would insurance return?
Home indemnity cover for a lost deposit is capped at $20,000. At the top of the Act's range a lawful 6.5% deposit is $32,500, so even a legal deposit can exceed what the cover would return.