Originally posted by Gladstone42
Could someone please explain the land tax situation in Qld. I have some IPs here in sunny Qld and have just read some previous posts about some concerns forumites have with this land tax.
Regards
Sorry Gladstone, could u be a bit more specific?
LT is a state based tax levied based upon the unimproved value of land owned within Qld as at 30 June each year. There are however tax free thresholds, below which you don't pay LT. Also, your PPOR is excluded.
Lower thresholds apply to companies and trusts holding land, however, the thresholds are higher than in some other states.
One of the many problems with LT is that it is not calculated by reference to the income producing ability of the property nor the taxpayer's ability to pay. As values, and the value of the underlying land, have risen it doesn't necessarily follow that rents have risen proportionally (in fact it's a pretty sure bet they haven't!)
Thus, I think that a lot of investors who previously have not had to pay LT are now getting slugged for it, and find that they haven't achieved any increased income to meet the impost.
I think the Qld govt has raised the thresholds slightly fairly recently (probably to take effect next year - not sure).
Apologies if I'm telling you stuff you already know.
Cheers
N.
