It should not be hard at all, as long as no fees are outstanding to old accountants, changing to a new firm should be straight forward. New accountant will write a letter requesting all information/records be provided to them in the event the client has not already been provided the records. The new accountant should also be able to access certain tax information directly from ATO

Just a note if lodging BAS’s via accountant you should be safe as March BAS has to 27/5/2013 to lodge and pay

When selecting a new firm I would recommend you always ask to also have access to a partner/director, as they are less likely to move as much as staff.

Hello Kashe

If you are in your mid 30's I agree Super may not be best option, I would be looking at combining some cashflow positive and negative geared property in your personal names.

You may also wish to consider properties in individual names to access the Land Tax Thresholds around Aust.

Though things may change in the tax landscape in the coming months so make sure to get updates from your accountant and the media, as the Henry Review has been submitted to Treasury in late Dec and some of the recommendations in the Henry review deal with property and in particular capital gains tax.

Though it is important to remember that investing may be long term and as such there will always be tax changes impacting on those investments, what I ask my clients is what is the most important increasing wealth and minimising tax or paying zero tax.

I also agree discuss with your accountant before you do anything more, as they know your position better.

KR
Anna Kyriacou

Hello Ryhs

Congrats on your achievements so far, there is no doubt you will be very successful.  From personal experience property development is very risky if not enough homework and funding is in place.  I would recommend as you have just recently purchased your unit (which I am assuming you live in) and your business sounds still young I would do the following.

Work at paying off as much as you can on the unit (though if you plan to move out best to keep loan intact and pay into a mortgage offset account – this keeps the tax benefits when you move out and rent)  Look at expanding your business – getting you builders Lic is a great start to doing this.  Once you have established yourself in your business and cashflow is good start off buying a rundown property (if you can live in it while renovating – all the better from a tax point of you – or structure it as a business expense) I cannot comment not knowing your full financial details.  This project should yeild a good profit which you can use either the cash or the equity to start your 6 unit development.

I have seen in the past property developers go under because they did not have sufficent money to start the project and relied on bank lending at high rates, this is all good when you can sell and develop in a short time span, but sometimes the Land & Environment Courts and Council have other ideas.

Sometimes it is worth purchasing a site with DA approval, as this can save you time and money in the long run.

Again Congrats on your succss so far, no doubt you will be a larger player in the near future in property

Anna Kyriacou

AKA Group Accoutants Advisors Mentors
Creative ProActive Innovative

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