Michael has been once again voted Australia’s leading property investment advisor by the readers of ‘Your Investment Property Magazine’, but he’s not a theorist… He has been successfully investing in property since 1971 and is a leading property commentator and Australia’s most widely read property investment blogger. Join over 115,000 others who get their updates from Michael and his group of expert guest bloggers and benefit from their perspective.
SQM Research released its latest data on residential rental property vacancy rates. Australia’s national residential vacancy rate fell to 1.1% in February 2026, down from 1.2% in January and notably down from February 2025 (1.3%). The total number of residential vacancies declined to 34,572 dwellings, indicating continued tightening in rental market conditions across most capital…
Here’s the uncomfortable truth many Australians are starting to realise – you can work harder than ever, do everything “right”, yet still fall behind financially. It’s not due to buying too many lattes or smashed avocado sandwiches, and it’s certainly not due to a lack of ambition. It’s because the rules of money quietly changed…
Capital city rental markets have continued to tighten over February with most cities reporting lower vacancy rates for both houses and units. Most capitals reported higher or steady house rents over the month with Hobart the top performer up by 1.7% followed by Perth higher by 1.4%, Darwin up 0.2% with Melbourne and Adelaide steady….
![[PODCAST] 20 Years of Property Investment Lessons from Wealth Retreat with Brett Warren](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/761_20-Years-of-PI-Lessons-MY-Youtube-cover-270x200.jpg)
Have you ever noticed that some investors seem to move forward every year, while others stay stuck, despite reading the same books and listening to the same podcasts? Have you ever wondered why two people can earn similar incomes, buy similar properties, and yet one builds real wealth while the other just stays busy? And…
Something interesting has just happened in the interest rate debate. For months Australians were told the worst of the interest rate cycle was behind us. Inflation was easing, the economy was slowing, and many commentators were confidently predicting rate cuts sometime in the near future. But suddenly the narrative has flipped. Two of Australia’s largest banks…
Most property investors spend years focusing on buying well, holding quality assets and riding the long-term growth of the market. But surprisingly few give enough thought to how they’ll eventually exit, and more importantly, how much of their hard-earned capital growth they’ll actually keep. That’s where the 50% Capital Gains Tax (CGT) discount comes in….
It is very common for people to make an initial investment e.g., buy a parcel of shares or an investment property, but fail to make any further investments for many years or decades. Why does this happen? What is paralysing their ability to make investment decisions? Perhaps you don’t have enough time We use lack…
If you’ve been following the headlines, you’ve probably seen all sorts of theories about what’s pushing Australian property prices to record highs again. Some say it’s greedy investors. Others blame land shortages, migration, or tax policies. But the truth is much simpler – and far more powerful. Property prices, like every other market, ultimately obey…
![[PODCAST] The Capital Gains Tax Debate: What Property Investors Must Know, with Ken Raiss](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/763-The_Capital_Gains_Tax_Debate-KR-Youtube-cover-270x200.jpg)
What if the next big housing reform doesn’t fix housing affordability at all? What if it doesn’t lower property prices, doesn’t deliver much extra money to the government for years, but it scares investors out of the market and makes renting even harder? Because that’s exactly what could happen if Australia changes the Capital Gains…
There seems to be ongoing confusion about the role housing is playing in Australian inflation and whether the recently expanded 5% Deposit Scheme has anything to do with the current CPI pulse and the February 2026 official interest rate lift. Let’s start with the facts. Housing carries roughly 21–23% of the CPI basket. Within that, rents account…
