Where are Canberra's negative gearing investors?

Canberra’s suburban investors will be hardest hit if Labor’s plan to change negative gearing goes ahead, says the ACT property industry’s peak lobby group.

The ACT Property Council has revealed the territory’s top 10 postcodes for investors who use negative gearing.

The ACT postcode 2615, including Latham, Holt, Flynn, Florey and Melba, contains the city’s highest number of investors with 2990 people negatively gearing property.

Next in line is the Gungahlin postcode 2913, including Casey, Nicholls, Palmerston and the new suburb of Taylor, where there are 2750 investors.

Postcode 2617 includes Belconnen, Bruce, Evatt and McKellar and is home to 2380 investors, while the inner north enclave of Downer Dickson, Watson, Lyneham and Ainslie (2602) includes 2325.

At the opposite end of the ACT, Tuggeranong’s 2905 suburbs of Bonython, Calwell, Chisholm and Gilmore round out the top five with 2170 investors.

There are 46,800 Canberrans who own an investment property, including 30,700 who use negative gearing, says the Property Council ACT, which has collated the postcode breakdown based on an analysis of Australian Taxation Office statistics.

While some suburbs listed contain some of the territory’s newer houses and units, many are home to dwellings unlikely to be negatively geared under the Labor government’s policy, which would only apply to new homes after July 1, 2017.

Acting executive director Mary Wood said the proposed changes would have a huge impact if introduced.

“A large number of investment properties are negatively geared in Canberra – double the national average – because of the number of people who move here on a non-permanent basis for work,” she said.

“So any changes to rent or prices flowing from restrictions to negative gearing will have a big effect on Canberra.”

She feared Labor’s proposed changes to negative gearing could force up the price of renting properties in Canberra or turn people away from investing.

“Any change to negative gearing for established homes means there’s a real risk of owners increasing rent to cover their costs,” she said.

“Another big risk is that a significant proportion of investors simply walk away from property – drying up supply at the time we need it most.”

Where are Canberra’s negative gearers?

1. 2615: Latham, Holt, Flynn, Florey and Melba

2. 2913: Casey, Taylor, Nicholls and Palmerston

3. 2617: Belconnen, Bruce, Evatt and McKellar

4. 2602: Downer, Dickson, Watson, Lyneham, Ainslie

5. 2905: Bonython, Calwell, Chisholm and Gilmore

6. 2914: Forde, Bonner, Throsby and Amaroo

7. 2611: Chapman, Weston Creek, Stirling, Holder, Rivett, Duffy and Fisher

8. 2604: Kingston, Narrabundah and Causeway

9. 2906: Banks, Gordon and Conder

10. 2614: Scullin, Page, Hawker and Cook