Yes, you get 6 months 'crossover' when buyinga new PPOR, so there would be no CGT issue for this period. Most likey you will be liable for some CGT on Property B, as it wasn't moved into as soon as you were able to. If you don't move in for, say 2 and a half years, and you hold the property in total for 10 years, then you will pay CGT on 2/10ths of your capital gain, then halved again. (so efffectively 1/10th, or 10%)

But, the holding csots, interest and building expenses will form part of your cost base for capital gains, so the interest and holding costs will most likely outweigh the 10% of the profit. So yes, you will be selling a cGT assewt, but the likelihood is you will have hardly any tax to pay, if any at all.

Yes, as you can only have one PPOR at any one time. A married couple can not have one house for him and another for her, so if you chose to keep the family home as your PPOR, the new home will be subject to 50% CGT (IE – your share) of the capital gain.

Depending on when the family home was purchased, you may be able to add holding costs to the cost base. .

Th ATO are cracking down on this. If the rent from your IP is going to pay other non-deductible debt, then you may have an issue. The ATO would argue that you it's not a a cashflow issue, it's a tax avoidance issue, similar to Hart's case.

The question you would need to answer, is why, if you have a cashflow issue,. is the income from your property not going to pay down your IP debt?

I am looking at having a security screen door installed in one of my IPs, it does not currently have one, and for security reasons the tenant wants one in the house, is this considered a capital expense as it is an improvement, or as it is required for safety/security, is it depreciable?

Generally, this would be able to be depreciated, as an improvement. It wouldn't be a building depreciation item, at 2.5%. It would be a separate asset, like carpets / airconditioning etc, and depreciated over it's expected life.

Secondly if it was depreciable, (if I was replacing an old one for example), when it comes to the $300 immediate deduction vs claiming it over its life for more expensive items, is the $300 inclusive of the installation and call out fees, as most tradies charge 80-120 just to do the job.

Yes it is. Depreciation talks about the asset 'being ready for use'. Installation and freight costs are included in the asset cost for getting it ready for use.

If the installation was free, however they also charged me a fee for repairs to the back external door, would this 1. be considered like items, and need to be claimed together 2. be able to be claimed as a seperate charge and thus still able to claim my screen door immediately

If the new door installation is free, then you'd be ok. The repairs to a different door would be considered a separate transaction.

Capital gains tax is based on the contract date, so if you sign the contract pre- June 30, the income is declared in the 2011/12 financial year.

The tax return must be lodged by October 31st (if you do it yourself) or as late as May 15 2013, if you are registered with a tax agent.

You then usually get 21 days from the date of lodgement to pay the tax.

If you are registered with a tax agent, he or she will be able to tell you when the tax return is due.

Lastly, you can register with a tax agent before October 31, and your lodgement date may be pushed out to as late as May 15.

If you can get access tothe property, then it's probably worth it. You would be able to claim the cost of the report.

Hi Lila,

I'm a partner in a small accounting practice, based in Norwood. Send me a PM if you would like some more information.

That's right. GST registration is only required if you are running a business. Developing for profit would most likely be considered a business, but a once off development as per your example would most likely not be considered a business for GST purposes.

The SRO wouldn't talk about CGT, as the ATO is the body responsible for determining who has to pay CGT. Perhaps the SROP was talking about an exemption for land tax?

To qualify for the main residence exemption from CGT, the owner of the dwelling must be an individual.

The purchase costs are not deductible, eve if the property was purchased in your own name. They are a capital cost, and form part of the cost base.

Expenses are deductible to the trust, as the owner of the property. If a Discretionary trust makes a loss (ie – expenses are greater than income) then the loss stays with the trust, to be offset against future profits. A loss can not be distributed to beneficiaries.

There is a program called 'Cashflow Manager', easier to use than MYOB, and looks like a spreadsheet on screen.

http://www.cashflow-manager.com.au/Products/CashflowManagerGold.aspx 

It has cashflow software as well as Wages and Invoice programs.