News Corp Australia
First published 4 Jun 2026, 11:31am
Ray White’s Haesley Cush. Photo: Supplied.
Confusion around the definition of ‘new property’ following controversial Budget tax reforms for capital gains tax and negative gearing is already scuppering deals, even on the upper end of town, says auctioneer and co-founder of the Ray White Collective, Haesley Cush
***
What is a new property ?
I thought I knew and I bet you did too. Surely a new property is just one that hasn’t been lived in.
But, as an example, what if it settled years ago and has sat vacant, is that still new?
This is all stemming from the recent budget.
The explanation of what constitutes as a ‘new property’ has left lingering questions and a specific definition, it seems, is still in the works.
MORE: The hidden housing tax costing Aussies $61,000
Sad twist behind MAFS villain’s ‘trad wife’ palace
Housing shock: Aus needs two new suburbs every month
Controversial tax reforms announced by Treasurer Jim Chalmers (pictured) and the Albanese Government during the federal Budget has left buyers confused by what constitutes ‘new property’ under the proposed changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman
I have had two trigger events recently which has caused me to ask this question and dive deep on the answer.
The first was a question from a friend recently, in relation to how I was educating our group on the definition of a new property.
She had read a document from an insurance company advising that real estate agents would need to be very careful when advising clients on what ‘new’ was under this new budget. Because if they get it wrong, the liability could be extreme.
Under the new budget if the property isn’t deemed to be ‘new’ then the buyer wouldn’t be eligible to use negative gearing and they would have to use the new indexed functionality for capital gains tax.
Their recommendation was to tell the buyer to get their own independent advice or get clear written instructions from the seller.
Well coincidentally that played out at our auctions last Saturday and the result was shocking!
We were auctioning two luxury apartments in Kangaroo Point.
The view from one of the Kangaroo Point apartments
The apartments, the views and the location are world class.
The approximate combined value of the two units is $10million.
Independently, the buyer asked their lawyer and accountant for their advice prior to bidding.
A question was asked, “is it new?”.
The answer was, “yes, it was sold off the plan by the developer to these buyers, it’s never been lived in and has only just settled”.
But is that new? You’d think so, but with $10 million on the line, who’s taking that risk on that advice.
2702/8 River Terrace, Kangaroo Point, failed to sell at auction due to the confusion and has now been listed for offers over $5.05m – hardly first home buyer territory
The buyer was advised by their team to wait until at least the first draft of the budget has been released. That’s nuts!
So they didn’t bid, they didn’t buy and now no sale has occurred.
A seller wanting to sell, a buyer wanting to buy and a definition standing in the way. You can’t make it up.
Help us improve your reading experience
Got a minute? Your feedback will help us build a better experience for you.
Help us improve this page
English (US) · 