AFR: Value of residential property held by SMSF surged by 17% last year to over $20 billion, statistics show, prompting renewed risk warnings from economists

Livewire
AFR: Value of residential property held by SMSF surged by 17% last year to over $20 billion, statistics show, prompting renewed risk warnings from economists. Residential property holdings surged in the year to March 2014 to $20.5 billion, up from $17.5 billion a year before and there was a similar 17% rise in commercial property holdings to $68 billion from $58 billion a year ago, according to the new figures. Economists said that while the rise in property investment by SMSF, which triggered a warning by the Reserve Bank and corporate regulator late last year, was small it had encouraged speculative buying. BAML Chief Economist Saul Eslake said the $20.5 billion investment by SMSF in residential property represented just 3.7% of their total assets of $558 billion, and less than 1% of the value of the total stock of housing which was $4.9 billion at end of December 2013.
Welcome to Livewire, Australia’s most trusted source of investment insights and analysis.
To continue reading this wire and get unlimited access to Livewire, join for free now and become a more informed and confident investor.

3 topics

Livewire News brings you a wide range of financial insights with a focus on Global Macro, Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities.
Expertise
No areas of expertise
Please sign in to comment on this wire.