Turnkey, so it lets from day one.
A base price gets you a shell. A turnkey contract finishes flooring, paint, blinds, fencing and landscaping, so the property is tenant-ready the day it hands over with no surprise spend.
Last updated 14 June 2026. Figures are illustrative, general information only, not advice.
A turnkey investment property is a new build finished to the point you can hand the key to a tenant, including floor coverings, paint, window treatments, fencing and landscaping. The Property Plug shows the real all-in build cost for 102 Perth suburbs, so the turnkey number you model is the number you pay, with no base-price surprises.
Base price versus turnkey
Volume builders advertise a base price because it looks low. The catch is everything the base price leaves out, the items you must add before a tenant can move in. For an investor those are not optional, so the honest comparison is turnkey against turnkey.
| Item | Base price | Turnkey |
|---|---|---|
| Structure to lock-up | Included | Included |
| Floor coverings | Extra | Included |
| Paint and window treatments | Extra | Included |
| Fencing and driveway | Extra | Included |
| Landscaping and site clean | Extra | Included |
| Tenant-ready at handover | No | Yes |
- No vacant finishing weeks. A turnkey home lets the day it hands over, so you are not paying a mortgage on an unrentable shell while you chase trades for flooring and fencing.
- Fixed total cost. The finishing items are in the contract, so there is no creeping post-handover spend that blows your investment budget.
- Maximum day-one depreciation. Brand-new carpets, blinds, oven and air-conditioning are all depreciable from settlement. See the depreciation guide.
- Cleaner yield model. With the cost locked, your rental yield math uses one fixed number, not a moving base price.
As an indicative example, Horizon builds turnkey from $335,528 in Baldivis (home plus siteworks, land separate). New-home builds across the panel start at $309,218.
What sits outside the build price
Turnkey covers the home. It does not cover the land or the government costs, so your true total to model includes:
- Land. Bought on a separate contract. Add the lot price to the build all-in for your total acquisition cost.
- Stamp duty on the land. WA transfer duty applies to the land contract, with first-home concessions where eligible. See finance for the current thresholds.
- Headworks and connections. Some are inside siteworks, some are billed by the utility. We flag what our siteworks figure covers per suburb.
- Finance costs. Construction loan progress payments and any lender fees. Our in-house finance arm coordinates these with the build.
This is general information only and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. It is not credit assistance or a credit quote. Consider whether it is right for you and seek advice. Finance is arranged through Central Lending Solutions, the licensed credit partner The Property Plug works with (Australian Credit Licence or credit representative number [TBC]).
What does turnkey actually include?
A true turnkey contract finishes the home so you can hand the key to a tenant. That typically means floor coverings, paint, window treatments, fencing, driveway, landscaping, clothesline, letterbox and site clean. A base-price contract usually stops at lock-up or fixed-stage and leaves these as extra spend.
Why is turnkey better for an investor?
A turnkey property lets the day it hands over, so there is no gap of unpaid weeks while you finish flooring or fencing. It also fixes your total cost up front, so there is no surprise spend after handover. As an indicative example, Horizon builds turnkey from $335,528 in Baldivis.
Is turnkey more expensive than base price?
The turnkey contract price is higher than a base price because it includes the finishing items, but the base price is not your final cost. Once you add the same items yourself, a turnkey contract is usually cheaper and faster than finishing a base build piecemeal, and it removes the budget risk.
What is NOT in a turnkey price?
Land is bought separately, so a turnkey build price is the home, not the package. Stamp duty on land, council and water connection headworks, and finance costs sit outside the build contract. We show the all-in build cost for your suburb so you can add land and duty to model the true total.
Does turnkey help with depreciation?
Yes. Turnkey includes brand-new plant and equipment, floor coverings and blinds, all of which are depreciable from day one on a new build. We are paid by the builder, never by you.
Price a turnkey build for your suburb
One short request. We show the all-in turnkey cost for your suburb and the designs that suit your strategy. Free to you, no obligation.