Should an investment property be in your own name, joint names or a trust? It is the question first investors skip, because it does not change the price or the rent. It changes who keeps the money, for as long as you own it and on the day you sell.
Own name
The owner claims any loss against their own income and pays tax on the gain. The higher their income, the more a loss is worth and the more a gain costs. Simple, cheap to set up, and in most states it carries the full land tax threshold.
Joint names
Losses and gains split by ownership share, usually half each. That suits a couple on similar incomes. It suits a couple on very different incomes less well, and incomes change.
A trust
A family trust can direct income to whichever beneficiary pays the least tax each year, and trusts keep the 50 per cent capital gains discount on gains made before 1 July 2027. Companies get no discount at all. But a trust cannot pass a loss out to its beneficiaries; the loss stays in the trust. Land tax is often higher too. In New South Wales, land in a discretionary trust gets no tax-free threshold. In Queensland, trusts pay from $350,000 of land value, against $600,000 for individuals.
A couple buy two investment properties while she is at home with young children. On advice to claim the losses where they are worth most, both go mostly into his name. It works for eight years.
Then she returns to medicine and soon earns twice what he does. She has no deductions. When they sell, he carries most of the gain on top of his salary.
None of it was wrong on the day. It was decided for the next three years, not the next fifteen. Modelling both incomes, eight or ten years ahead, would have shown it.
What changes in 2027
From 1 July 2027, losses on established homes bought after 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026 can no longer be offset against wages. That applies to individuals, companies and most trusts alike. For gains made after that date, the 50 per cent discount gives way to indexation and a minimum tax rate of 30 per cent for individuals and trusts. The structure still matters; the arithmetic has changed.
Who this does not suit
A trust has set-up and yearly costs that a single modest property may not justify. Your accountant sets up the structure; modelling the years ahead first shows whether one is worth it.
Nicholas Lockhart
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General information only. No advice is given.
Source: Australian Taxation Office, Tax reform: reforming negative gearing and capital gains tax (updated 29 June 2026); ATO, CGT discount (updated 29 June 2026); Revenue NSW, Land tax thresholds and rates (updated 16 March 2026); Queensland Revenue Office, Land tax rates for companies and trusts.