Morning Briefing: Lobby Group says no revenue windfall from negative gearing changes

The Property Council of Australia has reignited the debate around possible changes to negative gearing... Sydney rental market pulls tighter...

Lobby Group says no revenue windfall from negative gearing changes
The Property Council of Australia (PCA) has reignited the debate around possible changes to negative gearing, claiming figures from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) show altering the tax break would not result in a windfall of revenue for the Federal Government.

The PCA claims ATO figures show the dollar value of deductions claimed via negative gearing has fallen drastically in recent years, proving that investors aren’t exploiting the tax break.

“According to the ATO, total losses from investment properties have fallen from $7.9 billion in 2011-12 to $3.7 billion in 2013-14”, PCA chief executive Ken Morrison said.

“This data puts a further hole in the case of those arguing for change,” Morrison said.

Morrison claims the fact the dollar amount claimed via negative gearing has fallen so much in a relatively short period of time points to the fact investors are using real estate to sustainably build wealth, rather than use it for any tax breaks it offers.

Sydney rental market pulls tighter
The rental market tightened across all areas of Sydney in February according to new figures from the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW).

According to the REINSW’s Vacancy Rate Survey for February, Sydney’s vacancy rate declined 0.3% to a city-wide mark of 2%, with varying falls recorded across the city.

“Vacancy rates in Inner Sydney fell 0.6% to 1.3%, while Middle Sydney dropped 0.2% to 1.6% and Outer Sydney fell 0.2% to 2.1%,” REINSW president John Cunningham said.

The February fall for Middle Sydney means its vacancy rate is the lowest it has been since September 2015, while for Inner City the February mark is the lowest its vacancy rate has been since at least March 2015.