Property Tax Accountant in Sydney for Investors
FOR PROPERTY INVESTORS · 2026 TAX CHANGES
Structuring and Portfolio Tax Planning for Property Investors
FTC is a Sydney-based property tax accountant for investors, advising clients Australia-wide on portfolio structuring, negative gearing and capital gains tax, before a purchase or sale, not after.
Negative gearing, the CGT discount and trust taxation are all being rewritten from 2027. Most investors get advice one purchase at a time: a broker for the loan, a conveyancer for the contract, a surveyor for the depreciation schedule. Nobody looks at whether the structure holding the portfolio still works under the new rules. That's the work we do.
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Portfolio-wide structuring, not one property at a time
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Own name, trust, company and SMSF modelled before you buy
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Across the 2026 changes before they bite
Registered Tax Agents · Chartered Accountants ANZ · SMSF Association · 5.0★ Google
Is This You?
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You own one or more investment properties, or you are about to buy your next one
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You are deciding whether to buy in your own name, a trust, or an SMSF
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You're not sure what the 2026 tax changes mean for your portfolio
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You want a long-term structure, not just a return lodged once a year
Negative Gearing & Portfolio Tax Planning
Negative gearing, capital gains timing and depreciation don't work in isolation once you hold more than one property: a decision on one asset changes the right decision on the next. We manage this across the whole portfolio, not one property at a time, reviewing which entity holds which asset and when a sale makes sense as your circumstances and the rules around you both change.
This is ongoing advice, not a once-off. Portfolios get an annual review; acquisitions and disposals get planned before they happen, not reported after, and that includes getting depreciation and capital works deductions right from the start, not caught up on at tax time.
The 2026 Budget: what's changing for property investors
The 2026-27 Federal Budget delivered the biggest shift in property taxation in a generation. If you own investment property, or plan to buy, three changes matter:
Negative gearing ends for established homes.
From 1 July 2027, rental losses on established residential properties purchased after 12 May 2026 can no longer be offset against salary or other income. New builds retain access. Properties purchased before Budget night continue under the existing rules.
The CGT discount is being replaced.
From 1 July 2027, the 50% CGT discount gives way to an indexation method with a 30% minimum tax on gains accruing after that date. Gains accrued beforehand keep the existing discount, which makes the 1 July 2027 valuation of every property you hold a critical number.
A 30% trust minimum tax is proposed, not yet law.
Treasury released exposure draft legislation for a 30% minimum tax on discretionary trusts from 1 July 2028, but no bill has been introduced into Parliament and the design can still change. Worth planning around if you hold property in a trust, though it doesn't carry the certainty of the other two changes here.
Every portfolio is affected differently. Whether you hold two properties or ten, in your own name or through entities, the right response depends on your position, and the window to plan is now. For the full detail on the reform, see our guide to the negative gearing and CGT changes. If you haven't decided how to hold your next property, start with our guide to buying in your own name, a trust, a company or your SMSF, and if you're weighing up a sale before the reform date, see how CGT actually works when you sell and whether land tax in your state changes the calculation.
Book a consultation to review your position →How We Help
Property Investors
From the first structure to the tenth property, we cover the full arc: establishment, planning, compliance. Every service stands alone or combines into a full portfolio review.
Buying Structure Advice
Own name, trust, company or SMSF: each one changes the tax outcome for decades, and unwinding the wrong choice later means stamp duty and CGT that planning would have avoided. We model every option against your income, your family position and your borrowing before the contract is signed.
Includes: structure comparison modelling, entity establishment, land tax positioning by state
Portfolio Tax Planning
Negative gearing, capital gains timing and depreciation, managed across the whole portfolio rather than one property at a time. As the 2026 changes phase in, which entity holds which asset, and when you sell, matters more than it ever has. Every acquisition and sale gets considered as part of the bigger picture.
Includes: annual portfolio review, acquisition and disposal planning, depreciation strategy
SMSF Property
Buying property inside your fund is one of the most powerful moves in super, and one of the most technical: fund, bare trust, borrowing arrangement and compliance all sequenced correctly. We structure and administer the whole arrangement end to end, with a mortgage broker and buyers agent network to take it from advice through to settlement.
Includes: fund and bare trust establishment, borrowing arrangement structuring, ongoing fund administration
Investor Tax Compliance
Rental schedules, CGT events and depreciation across every property and every entity: captured properly, lodged on time, year after year. Compliance run by people who work in property tax every day, so nothing gets missed as the portfolio grows.
Includes: returns across all entities, CGT calculations, depreciation schedule coordination
Own Name, Trust, Company or SMSF: How They Compare
Each structure changes your tax outcome, borrowing and compliance differently. This is a starting point, not a recommendation: the right answer depends on your income, your existing portfolio and your goals, which is why we model it against your actual position rather than apply a rule of thumb.
| Own Name | Trust | Company | SMSF | |
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| Income tax | Your marginal rate | Distributed to beneficiaries, taxed at their marginal rate | Flat company tax rate on profits, retained or paid out as dividends | Concessional fund tax rate, governed by superannuation law |
| Negative gearing | Losses offset your other income | Losses are quarantined in the trust, they can't flow out to beneficiaries | Losses are quarantined in the company | Not applicable: losses affect the fund’s own earnings only |
| CGT and the 2027 reform | Current 50% discount; the 2027 changes apply to post-12 May 2026 purchases | Same discount rules as individuals, held at the trust level | No CGT discount available to companies | Concessional CGT treatment inside super, under separate rules |
| Land tax | Personal threshold applies, varies by state | Often treated less favourably than personal ownership in some states | Company thresholds and rules apply, varies by state | Fund-specific rules apply |
| Borrowing | Standard investment loan | Trust borrowing, often needs personal guarantees | Company borrowing, may need personal guarantees | LRBA rules apply; new residential LRBAs ended 10 August 2026 |
| Ongoing compliance | Included in your personal tax return | Trust tax return, annual distribution resolutions | Company tax return, ASIC obligations | Fund tax return, independent annual audit |
Before You Exchange
The structure decision, your own name, a trust, a company or your SMSF, is the one that's hardest to undo once contracts are signed. If you're weighing that decision now, our guide to the four ownership structures walks through the negative gearing, CGT and land tax differences, our guide to tax advice before you buy covers what to check before you sign, or book a consultation and we'll model it against your actual position.
Our consultation process
First we work out if we're right for each other.
Then we get to work.
Your Situation
Tell us where you're at and what you're building. We'll be straight about whether we're right for it.
Discovery Session
A short intro call. You tell us what you're after, we tell you how we work, and we take it from there.
You're In
The decision's made, the work begins. Structured onboarding, systems in place, underway from day one.
Why Investors Choose FTC
Buy, restructure, sell: the big calls deserve more than a quick opinion. When
one’s in front of you, we sit down and work it through properly.
It’s
why clients bring us the SMSF setup, the trust restructure and the property purchase, not
just the annual return.
We specialise in property. From the first investment to the full portfolio, it's what we do every day.
We see the whole portfolio. Every structure and every property, planned together.
We go beyond advice. Lending and buyers agent partners carry the strategy to settlement.
We're accountable. Registered Tax Agents, Chartered Accountants ANZ, SMSF Association.
If you’re building a portfolio, let’s find out if we’re right for each other.
Book a consultationFrequently Asked Questions
01 What makes a good property tax accountant in Sydney?
A property tax accountant working with investors should model your buying structure, negative gearing position and capital gains exposure before you purchase, not only prepare your return afterwards. FTC is a Sydney-based tax advisory firm built around this: structuring, portfolio-wide tax planning and SMSF property advice for investors across Australia.
02 Do I need an accountant for my investment property?
If you own one property in your own name, a standard tax agent can lodge your return. Once you're building a portfolio, holding through entities, or planning a sale, specialist advice typically saves multiples of its cost, particularly under the post-2026 rules.
03 Can I still negatively gear an investment property?
Yes, for established properties purchased before 12 May 2026, existing rules continue. Purchases after that date lose access to negative gearing against salary income from 1 July 2027, though new builds retain it.
04 What happens to the 50% CGT discount?
It's being replaced from 1 July 2027 with an indexation method and a 30% minimum tax, but only for gains accruing after that date. Your properties' value at 1 July 2027 becomes the reference point, which is why documentation now matters.
05 Should I buy my next property in a trust?
It depends on your income, your family situation, land tax in your state, and the 2028 trust changes. Sometimes yes, often no, the answer needs modelling, not a rule of thumb.
More on trusts 06 Should I buy my next investment property in my own name, a trust, a company or my SMSF?
Each structure changes your negative gearing position, CGT treatment, land tax exposure and asset protection differently, and the right answer depends on your income, your existing portfolio and your borrowing position. We work through this in detail in our guide comparing the four structures, or model it directly against your own numbers in a consultation.
More on choosing a structure 07 Can my SMSF buy property?
Yes. Funds can buy residential property outright with cash, and can still borrow to buy business real property (commercial premises used in a business). New residential LRBAs ended on 10 August 2026; existing residential arrangements from before that date continue.
More on SMSF property 08 How does depreciation work on an investment property?
Two categories: capital works (the building itself, usually 2.5% a year if built after 15 September 1987) and plant and equipment (fixtures like appliances and carpets, though second-hand assets bought after 9 May 2017 mostly can't be claimed). A quantity surveyor's report is usually worth commissioning to get both right.
More on depreciation and capital works 09 How does CGT actually work when I sell?
The gain is taxed in the financial year you signed the contract, not the year it settled, and the cost base (what you paid, plus buying and selling costs and capital improvements) is what you subtract from the sale price before any discount applies. Getting the cost base right takes real record-keeping, not a guess at tax time.
More on CGT when you sell 10 Can I claim all the interest on my investment loan?
Only to the extent the borrowed money is used for the property, not what secures the loan. Redrawing from an investment loan for a private purpose, or refinancing and releasing equity for something private, can taint part of the interest and force it to be apportioned.
More on interest deductibility 11 Does land tax work the same in every state?
No. Thresholds, trust treatment and whether related entities are grouped together all differ by state, and getting caught out usually means buying your next property somewhere you haven't held one before, without checking that state's rules first.
More on land tax by state 12 What does property tax advice cost?
Cost depends on your situation and what you actually need. We scope it with you and agree it upfront before any work begins.
Information on this page is general in nature and doesn’t account for your personal circumstances. The negative gearing and CGT discount changes above are enacted law; the discretionary trust minimum tax remains exposure draft legislation and could still change before a bill is introduced. Seek advice specific to your position before acting.