This negative gearing calculator estimates what a rental property costs to hold, year by year, once interest and holding costs come off the rent. It splits that result by ownership share, then estimates each owner's tax effect at their own ATO 2025-26 rate. Every figure is an estimate from your inputs, not tax advice.
Last reviewed 12 August 2026.
Where most calculators stop
Most free calculators take one salary and one property. That works if you're buying on your own. It stops working the moment two names go on the title, because the loss follows legal ownership and each owner's tax rate does the rest. The calculator above splits the property's result by ownership share, then estimates each owner's benefit against that owner's own salary. It runs the ATO resident rates for 2025-26. It projects year by year, through the interest-only period and out the other side. And it lists what it doesn't model, Queensland land tax and capital gains tax included. Email the projection to yourself when you're done.
Owning it on your own
One salary, one property. The model works out the property's yearly result, then estimates the tax effect of that result against your own income.
Your bracket does most of the work here. Under the ATO's 2025-26 resident rates the step from 30c to 37c lands at $135,000, so the same loss is worth a different amount to a $120,000 earner and a $150,000 earner. Enter the income you'll actually declare, because offsets are ignored and the 2% Medicare levy is applied flat above the low income threshold rather than phased in.
Owning it with someone else
Two salaries and an ownership percentage. The property's taxable result is split by that share, and each share is taxed at that owner's own rate.
The ownership percentage isn't a preference. Co-owners who aren't carrying on a rental business divide income and expenses by their legal interest, whatever they've agreed between themselves. So model the split that's going on the title, not the one that looks best. One thing the tool can't show: a co-owner who borrows separately to buy their own share claims all the interest on that borrowing rather than dividing it, and the model assumes a single shared loan.
Owning more than one
A year by year path rather than a single year: value, loan balance, equity, after-tax cash flow and net position across the projection.
Two things matter more with a portfolio. The interest-only period ends at a different time on each loan, and the model shows the year the out-of-pocket figure steps up rather than averaging it away. And owning several properties doesn't turn you into a business that can allocate losses freely: the ATO treats most rental activity as investment, and its example of a rental business runs to 26 properties and 25 hours a week each. From 1 July 2027, losses on an established property bought after the announcement go against other residential property income and carry forward, which the engine doesn't model.
Buying in Queensland
Stamp duty, legal fees and borrowing costs are added to the purchase price before the deposit comes off, so the acquisition costs sit inside the loan for the whole projection.
Queensland transfer duty runs at $17,325 plus $4.50 for each $100 over $540,000 up to $1,000,000, and $38,025 plus $5.75 for each $100 over $1,000,000, per the Queensland Revenue Office, updated 25 June 2026. The home concessions apply to a home, so an investment purchase doesn't get one. Land tax is a separate bill and the model doesn't carry it at all. Use the QRO estimator for duty, and take the land tax question to QRO as well, before the contract goes unconditional.
The ownership split isn't a preference
Two people buy a rental property together. One earns $167,000, the other $31,000, and the property runs at a loss in year one. The instinct is to put most of that loss against the bigger salary. The ATO has published a worked example refusing exactly that. The higher earner asked to claim 80%, and the answer was no, because co-owners who aren't carrying on a rental business have to divide the income and expenses in line with their legal interest in the property, 'despite any agreement between co-owners, either oral or in writing, stating otherwise'. Joint tenants hold equal interests. Tenants in common can hold unequal ones, and a 75/25 title gets reported 75/25.
The deed decides it. Whatever the title says on settlement day is what each return has to say, every year you own the place.
That rule is what the calculator above is built around. It takes both salaries and an ownership percentage, splits the property's taxable result by that share, then estimates each owner's benefit against that owner's own income. Move the percentage and both sides of the answer move with it, because a dollar of loss reduces more tax for an owner in a higher bracket. The rates behind it are the ATO's resident rates for 2025-26: nil up to $18,200, then 16c, 30c, 37c and 45c in the dollar as income passes $18,200, $45,000, $135,000 and $190,000, plus the 2% Medicare levy. Offsets are ignored, and the levy is applied flat above the low income threshold rather than phased in, so a result sitting near that threshold is rougher than one well above it.
There's one place the ownership percentage doesn't govern. Where a co-owner borrows on their own account to buy their share, the ATO says that owner claims all the interest on that borrowing instead of dividing it. The calculator assumes a single shared loan, so a structure like that belongs with a registered tax agent rather than a slider.
Run it before anyone signs, while the ownership split on the contract is still a decision.
| Taxable income | Marginal rate |
|---|---|
| Up to $18,200 | Nil |
| Above $18,200 | 16c in the dollar |
| Above $45,000 | 30c in the dollar |
| Above $135,000 | 37c in the dollar |
| Above $190,000 | 45c in the dollar |
| Above the low income threshold | Plus the 2% Medicare levy, applied flat rather than phased in |
Source: ATO, updated 1 Jun 2026
Who built this, and who pays us
FAA Property Pty Ltd is a licensed Queensland real estate agency. Office of Fair Trading licence 4220395, real estate agent, current to 5 June 2027, and the number is on the OFT register if you want to check it. One office, at Suite 3-7, Level 5, Tower 2, 55 Plaza Parade, Maroochydore QLD 4558, phone (07) 5327 3469.
FAA Property earns a commission from builders and developers when a property purchase proceeds. The strategy session itself costs you nothing. Because we're paid by the supply side, you should weigh our recommendations with that in mind.
FAA is a real estate agency rather than a tax agent or a financial adviser, so nothing here is advice about your own position. Every tax rate and threshold here comes from a named ATO or Queensland Revenue Office page, and the one modelling assumption that doesn't is labelled as FAA's own. The rate table, the depreciation rules, the 2027 change and Queensland transfer duty each carry the date their source was last updated. What the tool leaves out is printed on the page rather than buried underneath it.
What the tool leaves out
- 1 July 2027
- Negative gearing limited to new builds
- Source: ATO, updated 29 Jun 2026
- $600,000
- Queensland land tax threshold at 30 June
- Source: QRO
- 2.5%
- Capital works rate, for 40 years
- Source: ATO, updated 22 Jun 2026
- 4.35%
- RBA cash rate target, and not a mortgage rate
- Source: RBA, 12 Aug 2026
You planned to put the loss on the higher earner
- Why it happens
- Two names go on the title, one salary is much bigger, and loading the deduction onto that salary looks like the obvious move at tax time.
- Why it matters
- The ATO requires co-owners who aren't carrying on a rental business to divide income and expenses in line with their legal interest in the property, despite any agreement between them, oral or written. Paying more of the bills doesn't earn a bigger share of the deductions, which is the point the ATO example above rests on.
- What to do
- The calculator models any split you enter, so you can see what 50/50 and 75/25 each produce before the contract is drawn. What the split should be is a question for your conveyancer and a registered tax agent, not for this page.
The depreciation line reads zero
- Why it happens
- The property is established. The engine returns nothing for depreciation unless you tell it the purchase is a house and land build with a construction cost.
- Why it matters
- It looks broken and it isn't. Since 7:30pm AEST on 9 May 2017 the ATO has limited deductions for the decline in value of assets in residential rental property, on guidance last updated 22 June 2026. For a property bought after that time to provide residential accommodation, it has to be brand new or substantially renovated, with no one having claimed depreciation on the asset before, and either nobody living in it when you acquired it or you acquiring it within 6 months of it being built or renovated.
- What to do
- Switch the build option on and the model claims capital works at the ATO rate of 2.5% a year for 40 years. The plant and equipment part of that line is FAA's own modelling assumption, 10% of the build cost written down at 20% diminishing value, so read it as an assumption. A deduction you can actually lodge comes from a quantity surveyor's schedule.
You typed the purchase price into the construction cost
- Why it happens
- The box asks for a construction cost and the number everyone has to hand is what they paid for the property.
- Why it matters
- The ATO says the purchase price of the building and land can't be used as the construction cost. Where the actual cost can't be worked out, the estimate has to come from a quantity surveyor or another suitably qualified person, and the fee for that report is deductible. Capital works you claim also come off the property's cost base for capital gains tax later.
- What to do
- Use the build figure from the builder's contract, or a quantity surveyor's estimate. Everything else in the projection moves with that number, so a rough guess there makes every year after it rough as well.
The Queensland numbers are missing land tax
- Why it happens
- The holding costs in the model are council rates, body corporate, insurance, maintenance and the management fee. There is no land tax field anywhere in the engine.
- Why it matters
- In Queensland an individual is liable for land tax once the total taxable value of their freehold land reaches $600,000 at 30 June, and that total counts their share of land owned jointly with others. The home exemption keeps the land used as your principal place of residence out of the total, while an investment property stays in it. So a first investment property is often the thing that starts the land tax bill.
- What to do
- Treat the after-tax figure on screen as understating the Queensland holding cost, and get the land tax position from the Queensland Revenue Office before you commit. Joint ownership changes this one too, which is worth checking at the same time as the income tax split.
One interest rate, one answer
- Why it happens
- Interest is the largest line in the model and the rate is a free text box, so whatever you type decides the result more than anything else you enter.
- Why it matters
- Rates have moved recently. The RBA cash rate target was 4.35% at the meeting effective 12 August 2026, after increases of 0.25 in February, March and May 2026 from 3.60%. The cash rate isn't a mortgage rate, and nobody can tell you where either goes next. The model also holds the loan flat through the interest-only period and then amortises it, so the out-of-pocket figure steps up when principal repayments start.
- What to do
- Run it more than once, at more than one rate, and read the year the interest-only period ends rather than year one alone. The year by year table is there so a rate you didn't plan for shows up as a number instead of a surprise.
Nothing in this model is the sale
- Why it happens
- The engine projects value, loan, equity and after-tax cash flow while you hold the property. Capital gains tax, lenders mortgage insurance, tax offsets and the Medicare levy phase-in are all outside it.
- Why it matters
- The tax on the way out changes in the same reform that changes the gearing rules. From 1 July 2027 the 50% CGT discount for individuals, trusts and partnerships is replaced with cost base indexation and a 30% minimum tax rate on capital gains, applying to gains that accrue after that date. Capital works claimed along the way reduce the cost base as well.
- What to do
- Read the projection as a holding cost model and take the sale side to a registered tax agent. FAA doesn't model a sale price for you, and no line on this page is a forecast of what a property will be worth.
You're modelling years past 1 July 2027
- Why it happens
- Anyone buying now and holding a decade is modelling straight through the change, and the calculator keeps offsetting the loss against salary for every year of the projection.
- Why it matters
- The ATO says the reform is law, on guidance last updated 29 June 2026. From 1 July 2027 negative gearing for residential property is limited to new builds, and properties held at 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026 are exempt. It came through the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026, Act No. 49 of 2026, which received Royal Assent on 26 June 2026, with Schedule 2 titled 'Limit negative gearing for residential property to new builds'. Treasury says an investor who buys an established property after the announcement can still deduct losses against other income from residential properties, including capital gains, and carry excess losses forward, but not against non-residential income.
- What to do
- The engine doesn't implement that quarantining, so for an established purchase made after the announcement, treat the post-2027 years on screen as the optimistic end of the range. The exposure draft that defines which properties count as new builds is still out for consultation, with submissions closing 21 August 2026, so nobody can tell you today whether a particular property qualifies.
Send yourself the projection
There's no spreadsheet to download. Put your email under the results and the year by year projection comes to you, ready to forward to your accountant or to whoever else will be on the contract. If you'd rather talk it through first, the strategy call covers what to check before you buy, and it costs you nothing. The negative gearing rules don't change until 1 July 2027, so there's room to model this properly rather than quickly.
Common questions
Take the rent for the year, then subtract loan interest, council rates, body corporate, insurance, maintenance, the management fee and any depreciation you're entitled to claim. If the result is negative, that loss reduces your other taxable income, and what it's worth depends on your marginal rate. The calculator above runs that for every year of the projection and splits it by ownership share.
That turns on numbers this page can't see, so treat any general answer with suspicion. What the model shows is the cost: the weekly out-of-pocket amount after tax, and how it moves when the interest-only period ends and principal repayments start. The tax reduction is a share of the loss at the owner's marginal rate, and the rest of the loss is money that left. Land tax, capital gains tax, lenders mortgage insurance and offsets sit outside the model. Take your own figures to a registered tax agent.
From 1 July 2027, negative gearing for residential property investments is limited to new builds, and the ATO says the measures are now law. Properties held at 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026 are exempt from the negative gearing changes. The law is the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026, Act No. 49 of 2026, which received Royal Assent on 26 June 2026. Treasury says an investor who buys an established property after the announcement can still deduct losses against other income from residential properties, including capital gains, and carry excess losses forward, but not against non-residential income.
This calculator doesn't model capital gains tax, so it can't answer that. The amount depends on your own cost base, your marginal rate and how the gain is treated, and capital works deductions claimed while you held the property reduce that cost base. From 1 July 2027 the 50% CGT discount for individuals, trusts and partnerships is replaced with cost base indexation and a 30% minimum tax rate on capital gains, applying to gains that accrue after that date. A registered tax agent can work out your position.
No. Co-owners who aren't carrying on a rental business have to divide income and expenses in line with their legal interest in the property, despite any agreement between them, oral or written. Joint tenants hold equal interests. Tenants in common can hold unequal interests, and a 75/25 title is reported 75/25. The ATO does treat one thing differently: a co-owner who borrows to buy their own interest claims all the interest on that borrowing. The calculator assumes a single shared loan.
Yes. It applies the ATO resident rates for 2025-26: nil up to $18,200, then 16c, 30c, 37c and 45c in the dollar above $18,200, $45,000, $135,000 and $190,000, plus the 2% Medicare levy that the ATO notes sits on top of those rates. The ATO last updated that table on 1 June 2026. Two things the engine skips: tax offsets, and the Medicare levy phase-in, so the levy is applied flat above the low income threshold.
No spreadsheet. Enter your email under the results and the year by year projection is sent to you, ready to forward to an accountant or to a co-owner. It arrives with the same assumptions you entered, so there's nothing to re-key and nothing to get lost between versions.
Stamp duty goes in as an input, and the model adds it to the loan along with legal fees and borrowing costs before your deposit comes off, so the figure you enter affects every year of the projection. Take that figure from the Queensland Revenue Office rate table rather than a guess, because it follows the projection all the way through. Land tax isn't modelled at all. Queensland assesses land tax on the total taxable value of the land you hold at 30 June rather than on one property at a time, so it's a question for QRO before you commit.
Where to next
- Smart Property Hub/smart-property-hub
- Investment property in Queensland/investment-property-queensland
- Investment property in Brisbane/investment-property-brisbane
- Where to buy investment property in Queensland/where-to-buy-investment-property-queensland
- New build investment property on the Sunshine Coast/new-build-investment-property-sunshine-coast
- What the 2027 negative gearing change actually says/negative-gearing-changes-explained
- What negative gearing is, in plain terms/blog/what-is-negative-gearing-in-australia
- New build investment property in Queensland/new-build-investment-property-queensland
- A worked investment property cost analysis/investment-property-cost-analysis-example
- The full investment property calculator/investment-property-calculator
- Book an investment property strategy call/investment-property-strategy-call
- Investment property opportunities available now/current-investment-property-opportunities
General information only. This page doesn't consider your personal circumstances and isn't financial, tax, credit or legal advice, so get licensed advice on your own position before you buy. Every figure the calculator returns is an estimate based on what you enter, and it doesn't include Queensland land tax, capital gains tax, lenders mortgage insurance, tax offsets or the Medicare levy phase-in. Income tax rates are the Australian Taxation Office resident rates for 2025-26, last updated 1 June 2026, with offsets ignored. Transfer duty and land tax figures come from the Queensland Revenue Office and change. The cash rate figure is the Reserve Bank of Australia target as at 12 August 2026 and is not a mortgage rate. FAA Property Pty Ltd holds QLD OFT real estate licence 4220395. FAA Property earns a commission from builders and developers when a property purchase proceeds. The strategy session itself costs you nothing. Because we're paid by the supply side, you should weigh our recommendations with that in mind. Financial advice and credit sit with other FAA Group companies, which are authorised representatives of Lifespan Financial Planning Pty Ltd, AFSL 229892. FAA doesn't lend money.