NEWSTART ALLOWANCE IF YOU OWN IPs

Hi,
Is it possible to get Newstart Allowance if you own a few IPs.
This is for my daughter who has been teaching overseas, and is coming back in a few months. She owns 3 negatively geared IPs, one is PPOR, though she needs all 3 to be rented out to cover loans, and would live with parents short term.
Both the income and asset values (after costs/loans) satisfy Centrelink rules. Yet when I phoned them the lady seemed unsure that daughter could get Newstart at all.
She just wants it for a few months till she can get a teaching job.
The Centrelink lady at first said it was possible, but on hearing she had 3 IPs, she balked and said she would be expected to sell one to get income. I don't see what relevance the number of IPs is myself.
To sell an IP would of course take some time and she only needs a bit of short term help (and does not want to sell off her future nest eggs).
I have heard of other people getting Newstart who own IPs, and wonder if anyone can share their experiences or any other advice.
How hard was it. Did you have more than one IP?
There is a Centrelink Real Estate form that can be filled out etc, so I believe it IS possible. I have found that Centrelink staff vary on what they know, so after waiting for up to an hour to speak to them, it depends on who you get, and the one I got was not that knowledgeable.
Any advice you can give is very welcome.
Thanks
Seaview
 
Last edited:
It IS possible to get some assistance, but you will need to get a special ruling and talk to someone who specialises in the area.

Many, many years ago, we had a few properties and were running a Business that was going backwards, and were in severe financial trouble. We didn't qualify for any parenting payment as their rules said that any losses were to be added back onto the income. In otherwords, if you had a $10k loss, they saw it as a $10k GAIN.

We were able to turn this around by some kind of private ruling, where our properties were declared a 'business', and so they didn't fall under the normal area, if that means anything. I think we needed a letter from our accountant that gave evidence that we weren't just investors, but were running a 'property investing business'.

Mind you, it wasn't Newstart, that we needed at that time, and as it was many years ago now, things might have changed, but it doesn't hurt to delve deeper & find out.

I suppose you could always use rationale when discussing this with them & say that it can take at least six weeks for a property to settle & the funds to come through, and that is only if the property was able to be sold that same day, so at the very least, you would need assistance for six weeks.

Failing that, if they won't help out, maybe the bank of Mum & Dad can assist her with a loan, until she gets herself a job, so that she doesn't have to sell up.:p
 
If she has sufficient assets to cover her during periods of self chosen unemployment, I dont see why the govt should be responsible for giving her money.

I assume she has been earning money overseas and should have put savings away to cover her choice of work/life location and future.

If she has been volunteering in a school for orphans in africa then maybe a bit different, but if its a work overseas paid gig, then not the govt's job to fund her.
 
If she has sufficient assets to cover her during periods of self chosen unemployment, I dont see why the govt should be responsible for giving her money.
I'm not sure if it is self chosen or not, so didn't mention this. It could be any number of scenarios with this one.

I assume she has been earning money overseas and should have put savings away to cover her choice of work/life location and future.

If she has been volunteering in a school for orphans in africa then maybe a bit different, but if its a work overseas paid gig, then not the govt's job to fund her.

Agreed, but it could be a volunteering gig. Either way, we all know people who spend all they earn & then the taxpayer is expected to foot the bill.
 
My word, Dave, that is a bit harsh. I hope you never lose your job and need a bit of welfare before you get a chance to sell your IPs. Assuming you have a decent portfolio yourself, being a consultant and all.
My daughter is a VERY hard worker and has paid lots of tax, and no doubt funded lots of dole bludgers over the years. It is very hard to just pay the bills working in UK where she is right now, let alone save anything. And teachers there are treated quite badly by the education system, and the kids are even more feral than some here.
But she remains a dedicated teacher.
BTW Dave, as it IS possible to get Newstart while owning IPS (just not sure of exact limits & criteria), the government obviously is not as harsh as you (though that is not surprising as we do live in a welfare state).
I strongly resent my tax money being used to fund dole bludgers, but not genuine workers who need short term help.
Anyway, am still hoping to hear from anyone who has recent experience attempting to get short term Newstart allowance while owning IPs.
And we would love to help her out Skater, but are just now facing a huge capital gains tax bill ourselves so cash is short.
Thanks
Seaview
 
Hi,
Is it possible to get Newstart Allowance if you own a few IPs.
This is for my daughter who has been teaching overseas, and is coming back in a few months. She owns 3 negatively geared IPs, one is PPOR, though she needs all 3 to be rented out to cover loans, and would live with parents short term.
Both the income and asset values (after costs/loans) satisfy Centrelink rules. Yet when I phoned them the lady seemed unsure that daughter could get Newstart at all.
She just wants it for a few months till she can get a teaching job.
The Centrelink lady at first said it was possible, but on hearing she had 3 IPs, she balked and said she would be expected to sell one to get income. I don't see what relevance the number of IPs is myself.
To sell an IP would of course take some time and she only needs a bit of short term help (and does not want to sell off her future nest eggs).
I have heard of other people getting Newstart who own IPs, and wonder if anyone can share their experiences or any other advice.
How hard was it. Did you have more than one IP?
There is a Centrelink Real Estate form that can be filled out etc, so I believe it IS possible. I have found that Centrelink staff vary on what they know, so after waiting for up to an hour to speak to them, it depends on who you get, and the one I got was not that knowledgeable.
Any advice you can give is very welcome.
Thanks
Seaview

tumblr_mad8a4hnAK1r6aoq4o1_250.gif
 
Hi Ace in the Hole,
The Centrelink website lists amounts required on assets & income tests - but basically they deduct mortgage from the IP value to arrive at net value (equity basically) which for a single person with own home is somewhere around 200 to 250k total, after that they reduce payments. Income is also based on rent minus costs, and any losses are added back. This sounds similar to how they calculate for people on Pensions and Family Allowance who also have IPs.
I am just trying to glean from
the brain trust here any more detailed info.
Thanks
 
Gosh Biz, not sure what gorgeous Castle clip is even meant to show. It went right over my very grey head. But assuming you think we are rolling in cash having made a huge capital gain, you would be WRONG. We got clobbered good in the GFC and are still digging our way out. I won't bore you with the long saga, but if it weren't for our IPs, we would have gone under. But through HARD WORK and determination have climbed out. Anyway, it is dangerous and foolish to assume we know others circumstances.
Cheers
Carol
 
Anyway, it is dangerous and foolish to assume we know others circumstances.
Cheers
Carol

Agree. I wasn't having a go at you because of that. You're (or your daughter) of course 100% entitled to whatever the government is willing to give you provided you follow the guidelines/rules. I just think the wellfare system in this country is screwed in a major way if it's true a qualified person with substantial assets is still able to claim newstart.
 
Gosh Biz, not sure what gorgeous Castle clip is even meant to show. It went right over my very grey head. But assuming you think we are rolling in cash having made a huge capital gain, you would be WRONG. We got clobbered good in the GFC and are still digging our way out. I won't bore you with the long saga, but if it weren't for our IPs, we would have gone under. But through HARD WORK and determination have climbed out. Anyway, it is dangerous and foolish to assume we know others circumstances.
Cheers
Carol

First thing I would be looking at are the unemployment numbers Australia wide for Teachers,it may take a while to be employed even as a locom as there are more Teachers out there then employment from our daughters experiences,and with 3 properties on the books then I don't think in any way would your daughter will get one cent from centrelinks generosity,maybe just draw some equity out and ride it out..imho..
 
Gosh Biz, not sure what gorgeous Castle clip is even meant to show. It went right over my very grey head. But assuming you think we are rolling in cash having made a huge capital gain, you would be WRONG. We got clobbered good in the GFC and are still digging our way out. I won't bore you with the long saga, but if it weren't for our IPs, we would have gone under. But through HARD WORK and determination have climbed out. Anyway, it is dangerous and foolish to assume we know others circumstances.
Cheers
Carol

You must be getting some AMAZING returns on your IP's if keeping them dug you out of a hole rather than selling them all.
 
Sadly Mico, we had a LOT of properties and have been selling them off over the past few years to clear the toxic debt from "safe" managed funds bought before GFC.. Even worse: all the losses were in my name, and the capital gains in hubbies name, so it really hurts each time we sell.
If debt was low enough we could have bumped up cashflow to help. eg with the last decent property we still hold, we plan to do a reno and rent out by the room. This is 2 houses on one block, and bumping rooms up to 4 per house, we will be doubling the rent. This will service a lot of debt, and being on waterfront reserve, I am hoping we can keep this one. The one we just sold was the best one, right on Moreton Bay, but it secured all the really bad debt. If you have enough toxic debt, no amount of restructuring will get you out of that hole. It was possible, but our stress threshold could not handle living with all that debt.
Also, re daughter using equity till she finds a job, duuh, well she would need a job to get that loan wouldn't she.
Re teaching jobs - she found work in Oz before going Overseas, by working in the most feral places where most teachers would not go. There are always casual jobs there, tho she is an English teacher and they are always in demand.
 
My word, Dave, that is a bit harsh. I hope you never lose your job and need a bit of welfare before you get a chance to sell your IPs. Assuming you have a decent portfolio yourself, being a consultant and all.
My daughter is a VERY hard worker and has paid lots of tax, and no doubt funded lots of dole bludgers over the years. It is very hard to just pay the bills working in UK where she is right now, let alone save anything. And teachers there are treated quite badly by the education system, and the kids are even more feral than some here.
But she remains a dedicated teacher.
BTW Dave, as it IS possible to get Newstart while owning IPS (just not sure of exact limits & criteria), the government obviously is not as harsh as you (though that is not surprising as we do live in a welfare state).
I strongly resent my tax money being used to fund dole bludgers, but not genuine workers who need short term help.

I maintain a cash buffer. Which is something that seems to be missing in her case.

Its not a personal attack on you/her. Its a general comment - why should the govt have to pay out welfare money to her? Shes not in "hard times" or been made redundant, she doesnt have a disability or mental illness, shes leaving her job voluntarily and moving back to Australia. And she has assets with most likely equity that could pay for months (or years) of living expenses.

Is that not what you invest for, so that if you hit a bad spell you have something you can leverage or sell to pay to live? You cant just take take take from the govt in negative gearing benefits ongoing, then expect the govt to fund your living expenses because you decide to move back to Australia of your own accord and dont have any savings.

Instead, you take any work you can while you look for a teaching job, rather than just expect to be given Newstart and rent assistance.

The old "but I paid tax I deserve some of it back when I need it" line doesnt go far with me. We all benefit from tax paid in far more ways than just by having a centrelink payment when we cant find work. 35% of my tax went to welfare last FY, I dont say "well centrelink owe me money now please".

Living and working overseas is a great experience, but if a working adult fails to save any money to fund a relocation across the world, I fail to see why the taxpayer needs to fund any person in her scenario.
 
what is newstart allowance?

I know it's some kind of centerlink payout, apologies for naive questions but how does this one differ from other forms of unemployment benefits?

are they called different names for different people?

how much per week is this newstart thing?

sorry I collectively know everything as "centrelink payments" and only through receiving rent from tenants - no idea how they handle it and what they call it at their end.
 
I maintain a cash buffer. Which is something that seems to be missing in her case.

Its not a personal attack on you/her. Its a general comment - why should the govt have to pay out welfare money to her? Shes not in "hard times" or been made redundant, she doesnt have a disability or mental illness, shes leaving her job voluntarily and moving back to Australia. And she has assets with most likely equity that could pay for months (or years) of living expenses.

Is that not what you invest for, so that if you hit a bad spell you have something you can leverage or sell to pay to live? You cant just take take take from the govt in negative gearing benefits ongoing, then expect the govt to fund your living expenses because you decide to move back to Australia of your own accord and dont have any savings.

Instead, you take any work you can while you look for a teaching job, rather than just expect to be given Newstart and rent assistance.

The old "but I paid tax I deserve some of it back when I need it" line doesnt go far with me. We all benefit from tax paid in far more ways than just by having a centrelink payment when we cant find work. 35% of my tax went to welfare last FY, I dont say "well centrelink owe me money now please".

Living and working overseas is a great experience, but if a working adult fails to save any money to fund a relocation across the world, I fail to see why the taxpayer needs to fund any person in her scenario.

Totally agree DaveM.
Either this person has an overly developed sense of entitlement or someone's bored and is having a go.
Look at the name ....:p And if this grey-haired person was in Australia 20 or 30 years ago, they wouldn't even be asking this question. It's always been: no to benefits if you have assets.
There are probably about 10 others in Australia as clever as skater. No-one else would even ask.
...especially here.
Kind of like - if you're really lucky with property but don't pay into a health fund and have a go at dole-bludgers...huh?
 
Unless you have quite restrictive circumstances, getting paid work should not be too difficult if you live in a populated area.

In 10 years doing business, I've only ever had 1 or 2 people come by asking for work.
Nobody gonna give you a job if you don't ask ???
And not a negative ask, a demanding ask.
If some enthusiastic person came in asking for work, willing to do anything for some cash, I already have fulfillment of all positions, but I'd let them wash my car and pay them $30, 40, 50, depending how how nice they polish it up.
I'd also ask them what skills they've got and see if they can help me in any other way.

Hustle like an immigrant and do what you have to do.

Seeking benefits is the first step to game over.
 
what is newstart allowance?

I know it's some kind of centerlink payout, apologies for naive questions but how does this one differ from other forms of unemployment benefits?

are they called different names for different people?

how much per week is this newstart thing?

sorry I collectively know everything as "centrelink payments" and only through receiving rent from tenants - no idea how they handle it and what they call it at their end.

Newstart is the dole. It's about $35 a day.
 
Back
Top