This new concession is set to last for 12 months and attempts to address ongoing challenges in the Victorian property market, particularly amid high construction costs and interest rates which impact both supply and demand of residential properties. 

How does it work?

The concession allows purchasers to deduct construction costs incurred after the contract date from the dutiable value of their property, potentially reducing the stamp duty owed. Unlike the existing concessions, this one will be open to all purchasers, including investors, companies, and trusts—not just first-home buyers or owner-occupiers. The concession is available only for contracts entered into between 21 October 2024 for 12 months ending 21 October 2025.  

Who benefits? 

• Investors: With the concession extending to investors, who can acquire the property as individuals or via companies and trusts, it could attract more property investments.  

• Developers: This could incentivise more off-the-plan projects by helping drive pre-sales, which are critical for securing project financing. The reduced stamp duty may make such developments more appealing to a broader buyer base, providing developers with the upfront sales needed to get projects off the ground. 

• Buyers: This will offer significant savings for buyers in strata developments, addressing affordability issues as housing demand continues to outstrip supply. 

Potential challenges: 

• Limited scope: The concession only applies to strata subdivisions. House-and-land packages and other property types are excluded. 

• Foreign purchasers: While foreign buyers benefit from the concession, they will still face the additional Foreign Purchaser Additional Duty (FPAD) which could temper the overall savings for them. 

• Limited project pipeline: With ongoing challenges such as rising construction costs and town planning delays, there are relatively few projects ready to be released to the market over the next 12 months. This may lead to developers rushing incomplete or financially unviable projects to market just to take advantage of the concession. The risk? Some of these projects may never get off the ground, potentially causing complications for purchasers. 

Overall, while this temporary concession is a positive step towards stimulating residential property development and easing affordability concerns in Victoria it may not provide enough time to drive substantial change in the property market. The property cycle takes several years to recover to market peak. In Victoria, previous off-the-plan concessions lasted from 2008 to 2017 and gave the market a nine-year window to benefit. That extended timeframe allowed developers and buyers to adapt and maximise the opportunities. In comparison, this shorter concession period might not allow for the same level of market stimulation, limiting its overall impact on increasing housing supply and improving affordability.  

How SW can help 

At SW, our property and stamp duty experts can provide the off-the-plan duty concession analysis and advice to help clients identify the most suitable concession method for their project to achieve the optimal duty outcome for their buyers.   

We can also prepare reports and forecasts taking into account the impact of the concession to assist clients in negotiating better terms with banks and financiers.   

Please contact us if you have any questions in relation to the above.  

Contributors 

Blake Rodgers 

William Zhang  

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Significant measures

New infrastructure spending:

• $1.6bn for construction and development of new schools and school upgrades
• $1.6bn for construction and development of new hospitals, health facilities and related upgrades
• $2.6bn investment over 4 years in the Commonwealth Games 2026 which includes funding for building and upgrading sporting venues and related supporting infrastructure
• $991m investment in improving Victoria’s roads and rail
• $1bn to fund low interest loans for community housing agencies to deliver social and affordable housing.

Key continuing initiatives from prior Budget announcements:

• Victoria’s Big Build: an average $21.3bn a year over the budget and forward estimates, reflecting the continuation of major productivity-enhancing projects such as the North East Link, the Metro Tunnel, the West Gate Tunnel, the Melbourne Airport Rail, the Geelong Fast Rail, the Suburban Rail Loop and the removal of 85 level crossings by 2025
• $6bn Big Housing Build package – continued investment in new social and affordable homes
• Stamp duty concessions and exemptions for residential property transactions, particularly homeowners
• Victoria’s HomeBuyer Fund of $500m, expanding the HomesVic Shared Equity Initiative by contributing equity to the purchase price for eligible first home buyers
• Continued concessions to eligible BTR developments – a 50% land tax concession for up to 30 years and a full exemption from Absentee Owner Surcharge over the same period.

For all key takeaways of the Victorian State Budget 2022/23 see here.

Opportunities

• Continued focus on infrastructure spending; the 2022-23 Budget provides $22.2bn in output spending and invests $6.7bn in new and improved assets. Investment in hospitals, rail and roads, social and affordable homes will continue to provide opportunities for property sector professionals and contractors
• Wage growth and increased household income will continue to drive demand for residential housing
• Continued stamp duty concessions, coupled with the HomeBuyer Fund funding is also likely to support the demand for residential housing. These initiatives may also mitigate any settlement risk for developer
• Ongoing Build-To-Rent concessions will continue supporting new entrants into that market
• Constraints on construction labour and materials may increase demand and investment in new property technologies aimed at delivering efficiencies in output
• There are no new taxes introduced impacting property purchasers and owners.

Did the VIC Budget measure up to expectations?

There are no new tax relief measures introduced for Victorian property purchasers, developers nor landowners. The constraints on residential and non-residential construction output, such as ongoing shortages of construction materials and labour shortages are also acknowledged but not addressed by any direct Budget initiatives.

The increases in costs of construction will be driven by projected wage growth of minimum 2.75% in the construction industry. This coupled with increase in cost of construction materials, also due to shortages, will continue to increase the price of newly constructed property.

While there are tax measures aimed at providing relief to homeowners (potentially neutralised by today’s interest rate hike) there is little relief provided in the Budget for the rest of the property sector participants such as property investors and developers.

Please reach out to one of our experts below for assistance navigating the implications and opportunities this Budget presents for you, your business and your industry.

Contacts

Daren McDonald
Director, Chair of Property &
Infrastructure Industry Group
SW

Matt Birrell
Director, Tax
SW

Sejla Kadric
Director, Private Business Client Advisory
SW

The post VIC State Budget 2022/23 – Property & infrastructure appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

The Australian property and construction sector’s growth has softened due to rising borrowing costs and supply chain disruptions. Commercial developments have been impacted through decreased demand for office spaces and the digitalisation of the retail market.

Infrastructure and construction sectors can be volatile, so you can rest easy knowing in some of the most important areas of your business, such as taxes, structuring, cash flow and funding, SW have the expertise to assist you to add value and drive your strategy.

Our property & infrastructure experts offer a full suite of back office support, advisory, structuring, modelling and compliance services to the property and infrastructure sector.   

Whether you’re a developer, builder, investor, financier or manager, we’ll help you navigate the challenges.

Our Property & infrastructure services

Spotlight | Property Forum #back2thefuture

Property and economics are often cyclical in nature. For this reason, experts often use the past to predict a future outlook. However, with global disruption, the level of uncertainty has increased drastically, with many experts uncertain if we can look back to predict our future.

For this reason, we brought renowned property industry experts together to take a deep dive into the changing landscape in Australia, the impact this has on the future for property and what people and businesses should be considering in order to prepare.

Emerging Developers series (EDS)

Taking the lead to support tomorrow’s leaders, our Emerging Property Developers series is now delivered virtually. This series has been tried and trusted by the industry for over 8 years and is designed to walk you through the property development process from start to finish.

An interactive four-part program facilitated by our property specialists is delivered to a limited group of emerging property professionals. Each session features guest industry experts who provide strategic insight into property development and key developer issues, from tax structuring to design and construction.

Industry Associations & Memberships

Our significant involvement in the property industry mandates an active involvement in current tax and accounting issues that impact your sector. We are also involved in consultative processes, making submissions to Treasury and/or the ATO. Other key involvement includes:

• Various Property Council of Australia and Victoria tax committees and forums
• The National Tax Liaison Group Trust Sub-Group, which until recently was the peak consulting
  body on which tax matters concerning trusts were discussed with senior officials at the ATO.

The post Property & infrastructure appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

The Emerging Developers Series express session is a two-part program of interactive seminars for an intimate group of up and coming property developers. It is designed to walk you through the property development process from start to finish.

You will have access to leading industry experts, and to learn from their strategic insight into property development and key developer issues from tax structuring to design and construction.

Event details

Speakers

	Daren McDonald, Partner, ShineWing Australia Daren is a leading accounting, commercial and taxation advisor to property developers in Australia. With 25 years’ experience in financial and strategic consulting to property developers on significant joint ventures.
	Blake Rodgers, Senior manager, ShineWing Australia Blake has more than 14 years’ experience in providing accounting, tax and business advisory services. Blake is a senior manager in ShineWing Australia’s property team and prides himself on providing timely and industry specific advice to his clients.
	John Grigg, Associate director, Sinclair Brook John has 14 years’ practical experience managing small, medium and large scale land subdivisions and built form projects. He brings experience from all sides of property development to his role, following a delivery-focused approach. He has the ability to effectively deal with complex project-related issues while managing the expectations of many stakeholders and, their often, competing interests.
	Adam Jaques, Senior associate, Maddocks Adam works within the Property Development team at Maddocks and has more than ten years’​ experience in advising local and overseas property developers, landlords, tenants, owners corporations and private clients on a wide range of development and property related matters. Adam’s current projects include large and small greenacre and apartment developments.
	Nick Lord, Director, Maxwell Collins Nick commenced at Maxwell Collins Real Estate in 1999 and is now the Managing Director. He is passionate about real estate and his overriding ambition is to grow the business so as to ensure Maxwell Collins is the most recognised and trusted brand across the Greater Geelong region, offering honesty, integrity and service that is second to none.
	Peter Preece, Project director, CardnoTGM Peter has over 20 years experience in the civil engineering field and has been a Director of TGM since 2003. He has a wide range of experience in civil engineering and urban development design. His experience extends from Local Government to the private sector where he has gained experience working on projects across Victoria.

Registration and more information

Know someone interested in property development? You are welcome to direct any interested property professionals to this web page or to the ShineWing Australia Marketing team via marketing@sw-au.com.

In order to maintain an interactive group, please note that places are limited to 20 and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

The post Emerging Developers Series 2019 – Geelong Express appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

We take the lead supporting tomorrow’s leaders with our Emerging Property Fund Series in Melbourne and Sydney.

This interactive five part series is facilitated by our own property funds specialists and industry experts, who will provide strategic insight into property funds management and key issues ranging from structuring, debt and equity through to legal and compliance.

Benefits of attending

• Learn how to protect your business and personal assets
• Different approaches to structuring your product
• Identifying methods to raise your debt and equity capital
• Market trends in the different asset classes
• Tax issues arising from different structure
• Effective exit strategies for your investors

Event details

Date: 5 sessions hosted on a monthly basis starting Wednesday, 23 October 2019 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 24 October 2019 (Sydney)
Time: 5:45pm – 8pm (canapes and refreshments provided)
Melbourne Venue: ShineWing Australia, L10, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne
Sydney Venue: ShineWing Australia, L8, 167 Macquarie Street, Sydney
Format: Interactive class-room style
Cost: $800 per person for the series or group booking for up to 3 people for $1,600 (prices exclude GST)

This includes:

• Five 2-hour sessions and networking opportunities with speakers and attendees
• Soft and hard copies of speaker presentations and handouts
• Automatic inclusion to our Emerging Property Funds Series, including invitations to future networking events

Session topics and dates 

Session 1: Fundamentals for Success, Property Funds – Wednesday, 23 October 2019 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 24 October 2019 (Sydney)

Speakers/Panelists: Howard Brenchley (APN Property Group), Paul Healy (Property Funds Association), Stuart Wilton (Centuria), Steven Bennett (Charter Hall) and Stephen O’Flynn (ShineWing Australia)

This introductory session will provide a brief overview of the series structure. You will hear first-hand from industry specialists the key lessons they’ve learnt, what challenged them the most, what worked, what didn’t and tips on building the right team.

Session 2: Fundamentals for Success, Personal and Business Issues – Wednesday, 27 November 2019 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 28 November 2019 (Sydney)

Please note, the Sydney session will be at 3pm – 5pm on this day.
Speakers/Panelists: Daren McDonald (ShineWing Australia) and Abi Chellapen (ShineWing Australia)
How do you separate your business fund from your personal assets? In this second session you will learn how to protect yourself, your funds and the appropriate ownership structures recommended to protect your investment and maximise your return.

Session 3: Fund Structuring – Wednesday 26 February 2020 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 27 February 2020 (Sydney)

Speakers/Panelists: David Southon (Aliro Group), Matthew Chun (Development & Property Consultant) and Simon Tucker (ShineWing Australia)
You may have a plan, but do you know which fund structure will give you the best competitive advantage? The industry experts will talk you through the fund structure matrix which covers local and international equity, fee structure and more.

Session 4: Debt and Equity – Wednesday, 25 March 2020 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 26 March 2020 (Sydney)

Speakers/Panelists: Warren Boothman (Open Corp), John Taylor (Crestone), Dan Freeman (Commonwealth Bank) and Matthew Schofield (ShineWing Australia)
This session covers everything you need to consider and what to avoid in modern-day financing. Identify both the traditional and alternative methods for obtaining funding, how to strike a deal with the banks and how best to raise your debt and equity.

Session 5: Legal, Regulatory and Compliance – Wednesday 22 April 2020 (Melbourne) / Thursday, 23 April 2020 (Sydney)

Speakers/Panelists: Legal advisor, Rene Muller (ShineWing Australia) and Rami Eltchelebi (ShineWing Australia)
Ensuring your i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed are important for the property funds management industry. Our experts will talk you through the documentation and practical application involved in your fund set-up and provide tips on avoiding common pit-falls to ensure you stay compliant.\

More information

Know someone interested in property fund management? You are welcome to direct any interested property professionals to this web page or to the ShineWing Australia Marketing team via marketing@sw-au.com.

The post Emerging Property Funds Series 2019/20 – Melbourne and Sydney appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

We take the lead supporting tomorrow’s leaders with our Emerging Property Fund Series in Melbourne.

This interactive five part series is facilitated by our own property funds specialists and industry experts, who will provide strategic insight into property funds management and key issues ranging from structuring, debt and equity through to legal and compliance.

Benefits of attending

• Learn how to protect your business and personal assets
• Different approaches to structuring your product
• Identifying methods to raise your debt and equity capital
• Market trends in the different asset classes
• Tax issues arising from different structure
• Effective exit strategies for your investors

Event details

Date: 5 sessions hosted on a monthly basis starting Wednesday, 23 October 2019
Time: 5:45pm – 8pm (canapes and refreshments provided)
Venue: ShineWing Australia, L10, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne
Format: Interactive class-room style
Cost: $800 per person for the series or group booking for up to 3 people for $1,600 (prices exclude GST)

This includes:

• Five 2-hour sessions and networking opportunities with speakers and attendees
• Soft and hard copies of speaker presentations and handouts
• Automatic inclusion to our Emerging Property Funds Series, including invitations to future networking events

Session topics and dates 

Session 1: Fundamentals for Success, Property Funds – Wednesday, 23 October 2019
Speakers/Panelists: Howard Brenchley (APN Property Group), Paul Healy (Property Funds Association) and Stephen O’Flynn (ShineWing Australia)

This introductory session will provide a brief overview of the series structure. You will hear first-hand from industry specialists the key lessons they’ve learnt, what challenged them the most, what worked, what didn’t and tips on building the right team.

Session 2: Fundamentals for Success, Personal and Business Issues – Wednesday, 27 November 2019
Speakers/Panelists: Daren McDonald (ShineWing Australia) and Abi Chellapen (ShineWing Australia)
How do you separate your business fund from your personal assets? In this second session you will learn how to protect yourself, your funds and the appropriate ownership structures recommended to protect your investment and maximise your return.

Session 3: Fund Structuring – Wednesday 26 February 2020
Speakers/Panelists: Matthew Chun (Development & Property Consultant) and Abi Chellapen (ShineWing Australia)
You may have a plan, but do you know which fund structure will give you the best competitive advantage? The industry experts will talk you through the fund structure matrix which covers local and international equity, fee structure and more.

Session 4: Debt and Equity – Wednesday, 25 March 2020
Speakers/Panelists: Warren Boothman (Open Corp), Dan Freeman (Commonwealth Bank) and Matthew Schofield (ShineWing Australia)
This session covers everything you need to consider and what to avoid in modern-day financing. Identify both the traditional and alternative methods for obtaining funding, how to strike a deal with the banks and how best to raise your debt and equity.

Session 5: Legal, Regulatory and Compliance – Wednesday 22 April 2020
Speakers/Panelists: Brendan Ivers (Hamilton Locke) and Rami Eltchelebi (ShineWing Australia)
Ensuring your i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed are important for the property funds management industry. Our experts will talk you through the documentation and practical application involved in your fund set-up and provide tips on avoiding common pit-falls to ensure you stay compliant.

More information

Know someone interested in property fund management? You are welcome to direct any interested property professionals to this web page or to the ShineWing Australia Marketing team via marketing@sw-au.com.

The post Emerging Property Funds Series 2019/20 – Melbourne appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

The Emerging Developers Series is a four-part program of interactive seminars for an intimate group of up and coming property professionals. It is designed to walk you through the property development process from start to finish.

You will have access to leading industry experts, and to learn from their strategic insight into property development and key developer issues from tax structuring to design and construction.

Event details

Date: 4 sessions hosted on a monthly basis starting Monday, 13 May 2019
Time: 3pm – 5:30pm (afternoon tea provided)
Venue: ShineWing Australia, Level 10, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne
Format: Interactive class-room style format where our expert guest speakers will share their insight and expertise on a key component of the property development process.
Cost:  $800 per person for the series or group booking for up to 3 people for $1,600 (prices exclude GST)

This includes:

• Four 2-hour sessions and networking opportunities with speakers and attendees
• Soft and hard copies of speaker presentations and handouts
• Automatic inclusion to our Emerging Developer’s Series Program, including invitations to future networking events
• Invitations to ShineWing Australia’s annual Property Update event which brings together Australia’s leading property professionals

Speakers

	Daren McDonald, Partner, ShineWing Australia Dare is a leading accounting, commercial and taxation advisor to property developers in Australia. With 25 years’ experience in financial and strategic consulting to property developers on significant joint ventures.
	Brihony Boan, Partner, Gadens Brihony Boan is a Partner in the Property, Construction and Planning Team at Gadens in Melbourne, focusing on property development and distressed property sales.
	Luke O’Grady, Director/Owner, INPG Luke O’Grady is a Director and Co-Owner of Incollaboration Projects Pty Ltd. With over 15 years in the industry, Luke has a vast experience with all facets of the residential development industry including medium and high density residential apartments, townhouse projects or land subdivision.
	Christina McRae, Director, Urbis Christina is a Director at Urbis in Melbourne where she advises public and private sector clients on land use and development strategies and navigating the planning system. Multi residential, retail, mixed use and major project management are some of her key areas of practice.
	Sam Nathan, Director, Colliers International Sam has engaged closely with the premium apartment market for over 15 years, initially as a qualified valuer and then as a lead advisor to major domestic and international developers, investors, consultants and financiers, having had significant advisory roles on some of Melbourne’s most complex and renowned residential developments.
	Tom Renda, Director,  Thomas Capital and Advisory Tom has 32 years of banking experience, having held front line roles as State General Manager and National Industry Leader in Institutional Banking, Corporate and Business Banking at CBA, NAB and CBA. Tom has extensive experience across all aspects of banking and is now assisting clients in sourcing finance through bank and non-bank lenders.
	Andrew Deveson, Director, Kapitol Group  Andrew has over 15 years of vast experience in construction, with specialised expertise in active education environments, commercial offices and large-scale residential buildings throughout Melbourne. As a director of Kapitol Group, Andrew is responsible for the management of projects and works in close collaboration with all stakeholders from concept through to completion.
	Brendan Young, Associate, RLB  Brendan is a highly skilled and qualified construction professional who brings competence and enthusiasm to his role at RLB. For his twelve years at RLB, he has demonstrated comprehensive understanding of all key disciplines, providing him strong grounding for producing quality Quantity Surveying services to clients.
	Arif Uzay, Director, RLB Arif demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of all areas of quantity surveying, financial and cost management, specialising in conceptual estimating, cost planning and project procurement. He has considerable experience providing services for both the Government and the private sector on a broad range of construction projects and industries which predominantly include retail, residential and commercial sectors.
	Matthew Gibb, Managing Director, Gibb Group Matthew has in excess of 20 years’ experience in the industry and 15 years in senior positions in commercial and industrial property both in Australia and overseas including that of COO. Matthew’s wealth of knowledge is second to none in the commercial industrial sector.
	Matthew Malseed, Managing Director, Hamton Matt is the Managing Director and joint owner of Hamton Property Group. Upon its establishment in the early 2000’s and prior to becoming a joint owner of Hamton, Matt was a key senior executive in the business.He has been a regular guest lecturer for undergraduate and post graduate courses in property at the University of Melbourne and RMIT and has a strong interest in mentoring young people in the property development industry.
	Sejla Kadric, Associate Director, Blake Rodgers, Senior Managers, ShineWing Australia Sejla and Blake both have more than 11 years’ experience in providing accounting, tax and business advisory services. They have worked with broad spectrum of clients, ranging from high net worth individuals to large private businesses, subsidiaries of foreign multinationals as well as local and foreign owned property developers.

Session topics and dates

Session 1: Are you Development ready? | Legal documentation – Daren McDonald and Brihony Boan
Monday, 13 May 2019 

Are you ‘development ready’? This introductory session will provide a brief overview of the series structure as a whole and focuses on the development planning process. Daren explains the importance of a holistic and strategic development plan along with key factors to consider before embarking on any new project. In particular, this session focuses on structuring, asset protection as well as understanding and developing risk management methodology.

Brihony will present on a range of legal documentation issues. Getting documentation right the first time around minimises the risk of liability, performance issues and non-deliverables. Therefore it is crucial that proper attention be given to all legal documentation including (but not limited to) land acquisitions, contracts of sale, town planning submissions and supplier engagements and building contracts.

Session 2: Feasibility and development management | Town planning | Sales strategy  – Luke O’Grady, Christina McRae and Sam Nathan
Wednesday, 12 June 2019

Luke will step us through the preparation of an accurate feasibility statement, which is essential to the developer’s assessment of the opportunity. In addition, it is critical in determining a host of other factors such as risk and reward, timings, tax and cash flow planning and equity partners’ expectations. In addition, a successful development is all about delivering your project on time and on budget.

Our town planning expert, Christina will talk you through the documentation and practical application associated with all aspects of the development cycle and give tips on how to avoid some of the common pitfalls.

Sam will provide an assessment on current market trends and give advice on how to determine effective sales approaches and marketing strategies tailored to your project.

Session 3: Construction | Funding | Construction cost management – Andrew Deveson, Tom Renda, Brendan Young and Arif Uzay
Monday, 22 July 2019

Andrew, our construction expert, will speak about the construction process including management of the respective parties involved, common issues and the fundamentals in implementing a successful construction program.

Our expert Tom, will address the role that debt can play in funding a development along with the legalities and risks around alternative financing options. Tom will also cover structuring the deal for equity investors and property schemes. In short, everything you need to know about what to consider and avoid in modern-day deal structuring.

Brendan and Arif will provide practical advice to ensure you start off on the right foot when it comes to managing the construction costs of your development.

Session 4: Developers panel discussion | Completion and property taxes – Matt Gibb, Matt Malseed, Sejla Kadric and Blake Rodgers 
Monday, 19 August 2019

In the final session of this series, there will be a recap on the different phases of the development cycle with particular focus given to the completion and settlement of the project.

The first part of this session will be led by Matt Gibb and Matt Malseed, who will share their personal insight into how and why they got involved in property development, lessons learned and their journey to date. This session will be a rare opportunity to get firsthand knowledge from experts in the trade – learn what to avoid in the development process, how to judge feasibility of the project and increase your chances of success.

The final part of the session will be a recap of property related state and federal taxes pertaining to acquisition, hold and disposal of developed property

Registration and more information

Know someone interested in property development? You are welcome to direct any interested property professionals to this web page or to the ShineWing Australia Marketing team via marketing@sw-au.com.

In order to maintain an interactive group, please note that places are limited to 25 and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

The post Emerging Developers Series 2019 – Melbourne appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.