WHY USE A PROPERTY ACCOUNTANT

That’s a good question. Think about this:

• Would you choose a GP to perform brain surgery?
• Would you ask a handyman to fix a jet aircraft?
• Should you get a general accountant to handle your rental property accounts?

The answer to all three is obvious: No.

Rental property accounting is a specialist field. That’s why you need a specialist rental property accountant, not just any accountant. Sure, they can probably do an “ok” job, those general accountants, but….

General accountants have to know a bit about everything. That means it is impossible for them to be good at everything. Just like butter, the more you spread it, the thinner it gets.

– Someone

By contrast, using a specialist rental property accountant means that you get in-depth knowledge and expert advice in that field. The field of investment property accounting has become more and more complex as more and more laws have been passed in the last few years, for example, did you know that:

• the Brightline Test starts at different points, depending on whether your rental is an existing property or an “off-the-plans” #newbuild?
• 2021 “main home exemption” rule changes apply only to properties caught by the ten-year Brightline Test period? Houses bought earlier and caught by Brightline Test on sale are subject to the old “main home” rules.
• Brightline period has been reset to 2 years for all properties currently subject to Brightline period as of 1/4/24? And this is 2-years forwards and backwards from that date?
• some Airbnb income is tax-free? (See this article for info on the thresholds)
• earning too much via short-stay accommodation might catch your property in the GST net? Should your LTC be GST-registered?

This is just a small sampling! As you can see, it is more important than ever to get a team who are focused on and specialized in this field.

The key point is this: we do property tax returns, every day.  That means we get really good at rental property accounting – unlike other accountants, who have to cover the entire field. For more info, see our extensive range of articles and videos here.