BEFORE COVID, Australians worked less from home than their counterparts overseas. However, now things have apparently been reversed.
And even though Australian office workers say they’ve been far more productive at home … there is a keenness to return to an office environment. [Read more…]
DESPITE A RECENT surge in positive COVID-19 cases for Victoria, the infection rates detected by its testing blitz have remained at a very low 0.2%.
And so, that would suggest the virus is not widespread within the community.
Furthermore, there hasn’t been any marked increase in the number of cases actually requiring hospitalisation.
AMID THE COVID-19 pandemic, the government has announced several stimulus packages to help Australian businesses. If you’re a business or property owner, here is what you need to know.
More business owners will be able to claim the instant asset write-off this financial year. The government announced an increase of the instant asset write-off threshold from $30,000 to $150,000.
The increase has also been extended to include business with an aggregated annual turnover of up to $500 million.
The instant asset write-off expansion is now in place and will be until 30 June 2020.
This fifteen-month incentive will support business investment by accelerating depreciation deductions for remaining assets not affected by the immediate write-off changes.
Different rules apply to whether an entity is using the simplified rules of capital allowances for small businesses.
Small businesses with an aggregated turnover of up to $10 million can take advantage of the Backing Business Investment incentive. They can deduct 57.5% of the asset cost in the year of purchase.
In later years, the asset will be depreciated as part of the general small business pool rules.
Businesses with an annual turnover of up to $500 million will be able to deduct fifty per cent of the asset cost, plus an additional amount of the standard depreciation on the remaining balance, in the year of purchase.
It’s important to note that both the instant asset write-off and backing business investment incentives are only available to business owners. This means landlords who own a commercial building (but do not use the building for business operations) cannot claim the incentives.
As you’d be aware, the government has also announced a mandatory code of conduct for commercial tenancies.
This mandatory code introduced a number of good-faith principles to guide negotiations between tenants and landlords, where a tenant has been affected by COVID-19.
Some inclusions involve rental waivers, deferrals and disallowing lease terminations. And you can find out more about the principles here.
IN REALITY, the Australian economy is showing solid growth in the metropolitan areas. And there is a flow-on effect into most regional cities – the only exceptions being those areas recently struck by drought and bushfires.
While not buoyant (and there may be a short-term pullback from natural disasters) … overall, the economic fundamentals look fine.
Therefore, we need to steer clear from unwittingly talking ourselves into recession. Because, as soon as confidence returns (and it will), consumers will start spending again. [Read more…]
…
SURELY THE GENERAL PUBLIC aren’t that gullible? Maybe they are.
Everyone knows politicians tend to massage the truth to suit their purpose. However, it seams Bill Shorten is once again trying to mislead people – in much the same way as he did with the “Medi-scare” campaign, in the lead up to the last election. [Read more…]
WHILE THE WORLD may be stunned by Donald Trump’s win, you’ll most likely find things will not be nearly as bad as everyone thinks.
And that’s reflected in the huge rebound in the stock market — once investors began studying his policies in more depth.
In many respects, the media is responsible for the outcome — because so much airplay was given to his outlandish rhetoric. [Read more…]
.
HAVE YOU NOTICED how people are generally now acting in a far more positive manner. And that’s simply because they are starting to feel “wealthy” again. [Read more…]
INTERESTINGLY, the Industrial property market in metropolitan Melbourne still remains the largest in Australia.
The market has evolved significantly over the last two decades — largely underpinned by the strong growth in supply chain sectors (ie: the transport, logistics and distributions sectors).
In addition, there has been significant infrastructure investment, population and workforce growth … along with the entry of major institutions and developers. [Read more…]
THE REST of the world looks upon Australia with envy. And you only need to scan these graphs to understand why.
It all comes down to a feeling of comparative well-being.
Australians have had it so good, for so long … that the current slower pace somehow makes us feel gloomy — because it’s simply “not normal”.
Meanwhile, most other countries just wish they were in our position. [Read more…]
UNFORTUNATELY, you simply can’t avoid experiencing some pain … whenever structural changes occur within the economy.
However, these changes also provide considerable opportunities for the shrewd Commercial property investor. But more on that later. [Read more…]
AND THE ANSWER? Yes, but probably less than previously — due to both the State and the Federal austerity measures, currently being implemented.
Some of the recently-announced public service layoffs will remove the “automatic” component of government take-up, from the CBD Office demand equation. But that’s not altogether a bad thing. [Read more…]
