An important reminder for property investors is that trips to visit residential rental properties are no longer tax deductible. There are some exceptions but individuals and SMSFs with one or more rental properties are not considered to be in the business of letting rental properties for related travel expenses incurred from 1 July 2017.
There were no major superannuation measures in the May 2017 Budget, with slated super reforms commencing 1 July 2017. However, there are now changes to depreciation and deductibility which many residential property investors, including SMSFs with residential property investment portfolios, will need to take into account. There is also encouragement for people over 65 to downsize their own homes to make a non-concessional super contribution from proceeds, the general idea being to help free up the stock of larger homes held by empty-nesters for more effective usage.
If you’re involved in property investment and superannuation decision-making and administration, here are the key points to consider:
What happens when a property held by an SMSF needs repairs? Is it possible to use borrowed funds for renovations? Geoff Morris explains the rules…
Billings+Ellis is using Class software exclusively for handling the superannuation and self-managed superannuation funds of the firm’s clients.
Class allows us to administer and audit SMSFs with greater efficiency, which in turn helps us to keep costs down and our services and fees more competitive.
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Now the end of the calendar year is fast approaching, and many businesses shut down or partially close over the Christmas and New Year period, it is a good time for business owners to focus on areas they would normally put to the bottom of the pile. These may include:
The Financial System Inquiry recently released its recommendations. Headed by Mr David Murray, the panel aims to lay out a blueprint for the financial system over the next decade. Previous inquiries (Campbell report in 1981, and Wallis report in 1997) were the catalysts for major reform in the Australian financial sector, including floating of the Australia dollar and deregulation of the financial sector, changes to financial services regulations, the creation of Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), and changes to ASIC.
A recent study by Xero, a cloud based accounting software provider, showed 14 percent of small businesses in Australia are already using a cloud-based accounting package. Also, the study showed almost half of small businesses who do not currently used cloud-based accounting packages are considering doing so.
The superstream changes start from 1 July 2014 for employers with 20 or more employees, and from 1 July 2015 for employers with fewer than 20 employees. Large employers have until 30 June 2015 to start using the new measures. Failure to do so will not incur penalties before 30 June 2015.
For individuals:
Recently the Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2014 received Royal Assent. Amongst other things, this Bill repeals various measures brought in by the previous Labor government including:
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