The NSW Government’s exit tax is hurting thousands of property investors across the Illawarra and NSW south coast.
ATO figures obtained by the Property Council show that the region is home to more than 21,600 property investors.
Across the region Wollongong, Jervis Bay, Nowra and Mount Pleasant are home to more than 6,000 property investors alone.
On a state-wide basis, Wollongong is home to the eighth largest number of investors living outside Sydney, more than 2,200 people. Conservative estimates suggest that NSW as a whole is home to half a million property investors.
NSW executive director Ken Morrison said the Government’s exit tax was hurting ordinary Australians who had worked hard to secure their financial future.
“Vendor duty is not a rich person’s tax. It is a tax on ordinary people who have worked hard to get a foothold into the property market to secure their future or fund their retirement.
“Despite the rhetoric, vendor duty is not even a tax on profits; it’s a tax paid on top of the sale price and it can be paid regardless of whether a profit is made.
Mr Morrison said that the exit tax was a big revenue gamble which is not paying off and should be abandoned immediately.
“Vendor tax is a failure; it’s not meeting its revenue target, it’s driving investment interstate and its hurting thousands of ordinary people,” Mr Morrison said.
“We’ve called on the new Treasurer to take a fresh look at this tax and use the May state budget to end what has become a failed tax experiment.”
Mr Morrison said NSW was not in a fiscal crisis and did not need to hang on to this harmful tax.
“The state is on track to achieve a budget surplus of $1.4 billion over the next two years.
“NSW would be better off without this failed tax.”
Media contact:
Ken Morrison, NSW Executive Director, 0412 233 715 or 02 9336 6906
