My property is 120 acres; 115 acres of that is totally useless for anything except for the bush, trees and the wildlife it supports. This is fine by me. The problem is that I am unable to get the pension because of the size of the land, even though I am eligible in every other way. Things are financially difficult right now, and the pension would help tremendously. I have lived here for 18 years.

The size of your land isn’t preventing you from getting the pension – it’s the value of the portion of your land that is not considered your home. According to Services Australia, “normally only two hectares of land on the same title as your main home are exempt from the assets test”.

While being on acreage can be pleasant, the size of your property can risk stymieing your pension options.Credit: iStock

You are in a tough spot here because the means testing assumes that the assets you own excluding your home are available to help meet your living costs.

There is something called the Extended Land Use Test which applies when you have lived on your property for 20 years in a row. It appears this might provide a solution to your problem in a couple of years.

It might be worth booking an appointment with a Centrelink Financial Information Service Officer in your region, as they will be familiar with the options available to you.

I am 50 and earn $230,000 a year. My husband is retired. I would like to buy a one-bedroom unit for around $350,000 as an investment property. I can see that units like this generate rental returns of about 5 per cent per annum, but annual growth of less than 1 per cent. We can afford to buy this property outright, so is it better to buy in my name for negative gearing benefits, or in my husband’s name?

Does this actually stack up as an attractive investment? If the rental yield is 5 per cent, I imagine that would be before costs like council rates, insurance, maintenance and perhaps land tax.

If, after all these costs, the net yield was, say, 3 per cent – being generous – then your total return is 4 per cent (3+1), which is less than you would earn parking your savings in a risk-free (and headache-free) term deposit with a bank.

QOSHE - My bush property is too big for me to get the pension. What can I do? - Paul Benson
menu_open
Columnists Actual . Favourites . Archive
We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close
Aa Aa Aa
- A +

My bush property is too big for me to get the pension. What can I do?

29 0
06.04.2024

My property is 120 acres; 115 acres of that is totally useless for anything except for the bush, trees and the wildlife it supports. This is fine by me. The problem is that I am unable to get the pension because of the size of the land, even though I am eligible in every other way. Things are financially difficult right now, and the pension would help tremendously. I have lived here for 18 years.

The size of your land isn’t preventing you from getting the pension – it’s the value of the portion of your land that is not considered your home.........

© The Sydney Morning Herald


Get it on Google Play