Australian Property Ownership Page

Australian real estate is an extremely attractive investment for foreign owners looking to purchase for either investment or owner occupier purposes due to the stability and security of this asset class.

The residential property market in Australian is generally considered to be a very stable market and historically has not experienced the same level of volatility of other worldwide property markets.

Many foreign purchasers are also attracted to Australian residential property due to the security of ownership via a ‘Freehold’ title, also known as a ‘Torren Titles’. This gives the owner far greater security and permanent ownership over the property unlike a ‘Leasehold’ title which is usually granted by a government for a finite period of time.

However, there are some limitations for ownership in Australian residential property that foreign owners should be aware of:

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What are the limitations for foreign owners in purchasing property in Australia?

Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) restriction on foreigners purchasing residential property.
Foreign owners are generally limited to only purchasing residential properties in new developments are that either recently completed or commencing construction. They cannot purchase existing residential property.
High acquisition costs for foreign purchasers can make buying Australian residential property unattractive.
Stamp Duties can be as high as 13.5% of the purchase price which is $162,000 on a $1.2m property.

International marketing of Australian residential properties to foreign owners are typically for large scale residential developments that are less desirable to local investors and purchasers.

Any smaller scale boutique developments or houses sold to foreign owners are typically overinflated in price well above the market value.

For all these reasons foreign owners usually receive much lower capital growth and lower investment yields on their Australian residential property investments.
Abode has developed a better way for foreign owers to purchase Australian property
Abode Ownership