Australian Airbnb hosts

I’m keen to connect with other Australian hosts specifically to share and discuss tax tips. If there are any of you out there, would love to hear from you.
Thanks

1 Like

Hi @Glad

We declare our income as part of our partnership. Speak to you accountant. It is means Capital Gains Tax comes into effect.

Thanks Shanghai, I understand that and will declare. Have also spoken with accountant though not getting definitive answers, such as if you claim expenses against your bnb income, is that when capital gains tax kicks in or will it anyway, whether you declare or not? And do you know the % capital gains tax one becomes subject to? Wondering if there is a bnb savvy accountant out there?

Yes you can claim expenses and I think she said they work out the percentage of your house that is used for business and that gets capital gains.

Hi, Is your accountant a CPA (Certified Public Accountant)? They may charge a little more but I find them to be the most knowledgeable. Especially on tax questions you need someone who will back up their information.

Yes she is a CPA but I find there are huge differences between accountants these days, those that go by the book and those that are ‘creative’! Many seem to afraid of giving advice which are the ones I’d place in the former category, I’m looking for someone creative LOL.

There’s some good information here on how to handle your Airbnb finances and taxes (including some tips that may be exactly what you’re looking for). Some of it may only be relevant for US-based hosts, but it’s worth a read. https://www.guesty.com/blog/how-to-manage-airbnb-finances-5-steps/

Thank you so much Sara. Hoping Australia will come up with something similar that’s relevant to us here as we can be subject to capital gains tax when we sell, even though it’s our principal place of residence.

Great. I am on the same mission for quality info. I dont know what receipts to keep or how generous to be with breakfast hampers etc (knowing what i can claim will help me choose what to provide)

Hi,
I’m just in the middle of completing my first Tax Return after my first year of AirBNB.

It’s definitely a learning journey!

I would love to catch up face to face with other hosts in Melbourne to share best practices.

Anyone keen to catch up on Brunswick Street in Fitzroy Victoria?

Cheers from David

I’m in Queensland but if there are global Australian hosts perhaps we could set up a Skype or Facebook conversation group? I just did my first year last financial year.

Hi Glad,

Thanks so much for responding!

I would love to Skype.

My FB + Skype ID is “Boo Cross”

Cheers from David

I would be interested have you set up a Aussie forum? I’m looking for help in claiming expenses…like what can I claim?

We are in Queensland Australia and have been in AirBnB for 5 months now. Our accountant prepares our tax returns around this time but she doesn’t have much experience with AirBnB type revenue/expenditure models.

We rent two bedrooms in our main residence - our family home which we have owned for 30 years - still a sizeable mortgage though around $262K - monthly interest-only payments of around $1,200.

Our accountant has advised us to get an accredited valuation of our house now to protect our tax free capital gain as at this point in time. We are going to do that.

We are a married couple on the age pension. We have no super or savings or other income - yes I know!!!

We have received around $4K in revenue from AirBnB to date and spent about $2.5K to bring the bedrooms and some other things up to an acceptable standard. So we are about $1.5K in front at this point.

We are in a very popular beach destination and it is likely that we will earn around $20K per year from AirBnB.

The issue for us is that every fortnight we must show the AirBnB revenue as income to be considered against our pension payment but there doesn’t seem to be a way to offset these cash flow expenses. Consequently, the Centrelink system regards us as having earned $4K over the 5 month period when in actuality we have only earned $1.5K.

I realise that the expenses can probably be partially offset against income in our annual tax returns but this doesn’t solve our Centrelink fortnightly payment issue.

As we know, AirBnB and similar is going to be a huge issue with the Australian Tax Office going forward.

Any thoughts fellow Aussie Hosts? It should be niche speciality for some Aussie accountants to take on.

1 Like

Ask your accountant about setting up a business and then showing a 3 monthly profit and loss. The big question is GST as rentals over 30 days are GST free. I think you are brave giving up your CGT on your residence.

This is the thing. I already have a company which has been operating for 20 years and the AirBnB deposits go into this bank account. The company has losses that are carried forward and one of the activities of the company has been to provide tourism marketing services to resorts as one of its activities over the years.

Initially I was hopeful that this AirBnB revenue could go through this company’s books. It seems though that it can only be allocated to the owner/s of the property, my wife and myself personally.

GST isn’t an issue for two reasons. My company is no longer registered for GST and GST is not payable anyway according to the ATO.

My accountant disagrees in regards to GST

Disagrees with the Australian Tax Office?

Under 30 days - GST applies
Over 30 days - no GST

OK. But only if you’re registered for GST? eg turnover of over $75K per annum?