Renters pay Stamp Duty?

[NedKelly]

Can you believe this?

http://business.theage.com.au/business/renters-face-tax-hit-20090130-7u1v.html

January 31, 2009

VICTORIAN home renters and small business owners could face hefty stamp duty bills under an amendment to the Duties Act being debated in State Parliament this week.

Proposed amendments to the bill will make some tenants liable for stamp duty if the property they are renting is sold during during their lease.

 

[Kristine..]

Yep! Great idea! Not.

Imagine telling your Old Age Pensioner that you were selling the house and they would be responsible for the Stamp Duty!

At a glance, the provisions mean that every owner in a strata corporation would have tenants in this position. Owner's levies include management fees, gardening, insurance etc which are paid for from the rent.

Every commercial tenant would be in this position as commercial rent is separate from outgoings.

What a lot of rot!

It really must be the silly season. As if we don't have a real crisis on our hands without the panic and lobbying by the social welfare groups that this will stir up.

Any Government that even takes this suggestion seriously will be signing their own death warrant.

And ... what's with the Stamp Duty payable on sale? Stamp Duty is payable on purchase. None of this makes enough sense to even discuss it.

(Phew!)
Kristine

 

[nonrecourse]

Garbage in garbage out. The article confuses commercial leases with residential. I got only half way through the article in the age this a.m. when I blew it off as more journalist nonsense aided and abetted by an editor who must be a fiscal pygmy.