I'm not particularly au fait with the finer details of trusts, but from reading Dymphna Boholt's "From Virtually Zero to $3.5 Million in My First 18 Months in Real Estate" the impression I was left with was that only a very good accountant could keep track of the complexity of such arrangements, and I've never met an accountant in whose faith I could put this much control of my financial affairs. Nor would I want to pay the setup and maintenance costs of the tangled structure she espouses, or fill in the multiple tax returns and study CCHs regularly looking for new loopholes and changes.

A company merely keeps property dealings at arm's length so that your PPOR isn't on the line should anything go wrong. Since my strategy is to hang onto property indefinitely, potential CGT losses are fairly irrelevant. More important when starting out is maximal availability of expansion funds and a simple but workable structure. There is still adequate tax flexibility in the sense that you can leave funds in the company and pay 30% maximum or distribute franked profits to directors if needed. And further down the track if something more substantial is required, it can be converted to a trust.

I don't quite understand your point about fixed shareholdings and dividends, the OP was asking for advice for himself and his partner on property investment and not trying to set up a megalithic corporation. The average property investor only ever buys one investment property, and very few have more than four.

Do you mean Nathan Birch?  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn0KNRTgNM8

Since foreign nationals can own property in Australia, I'd imagine that none would be needed at all.