Business

16/03/2017

The foreign investor myth that’s fooled us all

THE Australian property market is a complex beast. Prospective homeowners are so desperate to get a foothold in the housing game they’re putting off having children as they front up to dozens of open houses and auctions each weekend trying to find their forever homes. Yet in the very same suburbs, foreign investors — predominantly Chinese buyers — are snapping up properties they’re happy to let languish unoccupied with no intention of ever living in them. What’s seen as the […]

09/03/2017

The 10 words that may signal a gathering storm for housing investors in Australia

“Supervisory measures have contributed to some strengthening of lending standards.” This 10-word sentence from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) on Australia’s housing market in its March monetary policy statement could signal something important. It seems to be a step back from the more confident tone expressed just one month earlier when it said “supervisory measures have strengthened lending standards and some lenders are taking a more cautious attitude to lending in certain segments”. “Some” strengthening. Like many of our […]

07/03/2017

Cafes, restaurants, hair and beauty salons on the ATO’s radar as it steps up cash economy fight

An estimated 400 restaurants, cafes and hair and beauty salons will get a visit from the Tax Office this month, as part of the agency’s continued focus on the illegal cash economy. The ATO has in recent years stepped up audits of small businesses in high-risk industries, which it suspects may be taking illegal cash-in-hand payments. ATO officers with Asian language skills have been visiting these kinds of businesses in major cities across Australia including Melbourne, Sydney, Gold Coast and […]