Your tax return is a history of decisions you have already made. By the time it is lodged, the property has settled, the loan is in place, the asset sits in whichever name seemed sensible at the time, and the result is locked in. Compliance with tax law reports what happened to ATO. It cannot change it.
Tax Planning consultancy is the other half of the job. It is the half most property investors never consider BEFORE acting … especially in this hyper volatile environment of change.
The gap between reporting and planning
Most accountants handle compliance well. They prepare the return accurately, lodge on time and keep you on the right side of the ATO. What they are rarely asked to do is sit down before a decision is made and work through what it will cost, what it will trigger, and whether there is a better way to hold the asset.
That gap matters more in property than in almost any other asset class. Property decisions are large, infrequent and difficult to unwind. The wrong ownership structure is not something you can quietly correct next financial year. Selling in the wrong income year, or without understanding how the gain sits alongside the rest of your position, can produce a result you had not planned for. Buying without a clear view of the GST treatment can leave a developer exposed on a margin they have already committed.
None of this is exotic. It is the difference between asking what happened and asking what should happen next.
Why the next twelve months are worth planning around
There is a live reason to be having this conversation now.
The first part of the Federal Government’s tax reform package became law in June 2026, and most of what affects property investors commences on 1 July 2027. From that date, the 50 per cent capital gains tax discount is replaced for individuals, trusts and partnerships with cost base indexation, together with a 30 per cent minimum tax on gains accruing from 1 July 2027. Negative gearing on established residential property is also restricted from that date, with properties held before 12 May 2026 carved out of the change.
Separately, the Government has proposed a 30 per cent minimum tax on discretionary trusts from 1 July 2028. That measure is not law. A consultation paper was released in July 2026, the design is still being worked through, and rollover relief has been flagged for those who decide to restructure.
Whatever your view of the policy, the practical position is the same for everyone. There is a defined window between now and 1 July 2027 in which the current rules still apply and decisions can be made with reasonable visibility of what follows. Windows like that do not open often, and this one closes on a fixed date.
What tax consultancy actually covers
Working with a property tax consultant is less about a single answer than about keeping a clear line of sight on your position. In practice, that involves:
- Projecting your tax position through the year rather than discovering it after year end
- Understanding what is claimable, and just as importantly what is not
- Testing how different ownership structures change the outcome before you commit
- Working through CGT and GST implications ahead of a purchase, sale or development
- Estimating the effect of buying or selling at a particular point in time
- Handling reporting and liaison with the ATO and your lenders
- Coordinating personal, business and portfolio positions rather than treating them as separate exercises
Positions age, so review them
A structure that suited you five years ago may not suit you now. Portfolios grow. Businesses are bought and sold. Family circumstances, residency and beneficiaries change. Children become adults. And, as the past few months have shown, the law moves as well.
Reviewing your tax position periodically is not an admission that something has gone wrong. It is ordinary maintenance on an asset base that has almost certainly become more complicated than it was when you started.
That holds whether you are an Australian resident building a portfolio, an expat managing Australian property from overseas, or an overseas investor holding assets here. Each brings a different set of considerations, and each is better served by advice given before the decision than commentary delivered after it.
Start the conversation
Property Tax Specialists has advised property investors, developers and business owners on their tax position for more than two decades, and was named Property Specialist Accountant of the Year in 2021, 2022 and 2024. Our team works with clients in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and across Australia.
If you would like a clear view of where you stand, and what your options look like between now and 1 July 2027, book a consultation or call 1800 800 829.
