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The Property Trio (formerly The Property Planner, Buyer and Professor)

The Property Trio (formerly The Property Planner, Buyer and Professor)

By: Cate Bakos David Johnston and Mike Mortlock
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 Formerly The Property Planner, Buyer and Professor, our show rebranded in 2023 to The Property Trio.

Residential property is the only asset class we live in, it is where we raise our families, and it is our most expensive investment, yet property advice remains unregulated. Our objective is to educate time-poor professionals through deep insights from our experts who have provided thousands of Australians with personalised advice and education spanning two decades. In a climate where we are overloaded with information and one size fits all recommendations from the media, well-meaning friends and family and so-called advisers, we will distill the raw truth from the ill-informed.

So join the Property Planner, David Johnston, The Property Buyer, Cate Bakos and the Quantity Surveyor, Mike Mortlock as they take you on a journey of discovery through the maze of property, mortgage, and money decisions to empower you to create your ideal lifestyle!



Links to your hosts:
https://www.catebakos.com.au/
https://propertyplanning.com.au/
https://www.mcgqs.com.au/

Copyright The Property Trio Economics Personal Finance
Episodes
  • #323: Market Update July 2025 – Darwin Soars, RBA Flags More Cuts Ahead, Rents Re-Accelerate & Vacancy Rates Tighten

    #323: Market Update July 2025 – Darwin Soars, RBA Flags More Cuts Ahead, Rents Re-Accelerate & Vacancy Rates Tighten
    Aug 18 2025
    Got a question for the trio? https://forms.zohopublic.com/propertyplanningaustralia/form/GotaquestionforthePropertyTrio/formperma/zYCQAxzE_24CVlDafP1ozyzwtmB-8m1iCNtCTgDvHXM

    In this latest market update episode, the Trio unpack the findings in the July data, and they reflect on the recent cash rate cut and what this could mean for the market.

    🏡 Capital City Highlights
    Darwin leads the chase by a very large margin and Mike touches on the chances of double-digit growth for 2025. Cate notes that every capital is sitting in positive growth territory for the past month, and while Darwin is galloping, Perth's 0.9% increase in one month is impressive too. Could Darwin's median value eclipse that of Hobart's? The Trio ponder the growth and pay credit to William, a lovely listener who tempted the Trio to create an episode on Darwin at the beginning of the year.

    📈 What is happening with rents?
    Is affordability biting, and behaviours changing in response to this? Mike suggests some possible reasons why the pace of rental growth is slowing down. Factoring in share housing, increasing household formation rates, re-partnering of couples following COVID, and a slowdown in skilled migration have all contributed to a slow down in rental growth.


    💰 Rental Yields & Investor Trends
    Gross rental yields tell an interesting story for some of our cities. Brisbane's rental yield has shown a subtle shift downwards. Recently on par with Melbourne and Adelaide for some time, the slight reduction signals the fact that the rental growth hasn't kept up with the capital growth.

    Hobart's tight stock supply has the Trio talking. A city of over a quarter of a million people only has 335 available dwellings; surely a challenging imbalance, and one that explains the tight vacancy rate.

    📉 Listings Drop, Pressure Builds
    Total listing numbers are down when contrasted against the same time last year, but not all cities are exhibiting tighter stock numbers. Cate reflects on the Old Listings data and draws on the annual change for Darwin in particular. What does this indicate about investor behaviour, and does it signal a risk for investors who aren't selecting carefully?

    📊 The RBA Rate Decision
    The Trio chat about Governor Michelle Bullock's speech about the recent rate cut. Cate was surprised at our Reserve Board Governor's openness about further rate cuts. When contrasted against her previous board meeting speeches, her willingness to boldly discuss more cash rate cuts was stark. Productivity continues to remain a key concern, and in the face of reasonably strong employment figures and lower inflation levels, it seems the RBA have more challenges to keep an eye on. Lastly, Dave wraps up with a great overview of productivity and what it means for our nation.

    Shownotes: https://www.propertytrio.com.au/2025/08/18/ep-323-july-2025-market-update/
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    49 mins
  • #322: Expert Tips for Interpreting Data - Why Suburb Medians and Cheap Buys Can Be a Trap for Property Buyer

    #322: Expert Tips for Interpreting Data - Why Suburb Medians and Cheap Buys Can Be a Trap for Property Buyer
    Aug 11 2025
    Got a question for the trio? https://forms.zohopublic.com/propertyplanningaustralia/form/GotaquestionforthePropertyTrio/formperma/zYCQAxzE_24CVlDafP1ozyzwtmB-8m1iCNtCTgDvHXM


    🎙In this episode, Dave is joined by Cate and Mike to tackle two common traps for investors: over-reliance on suburb-level data and the temptation of “bargains” in the bottom quartile of property prices.

    💸 Cate kicks things off by sharing her concerns about investors—especially first-timers—being seduced by cheap properties promoted in suburb data reports. Many of these are in low socio-economic areas or regions with limited long-term growth potential. While high rental yields might appear attractive, these properties often lack the owner-occupier appeal that drives sustained capital growth. Cate warns that when investors flock to a small area, values can spike briefly before stagnating, sometimes leaving the last buyers in trouble.

    📊 Mike reinforces this by breaking down the pitfalls of suburb medians. While they’re easily accessible, they can be dangerously misleading without context. Instead, Mike suggests filtering data by dwelling type, looking at sales dispersion, DOM (days on market), vendor discounting, and percentage of stock on market for a clearer sense of supply and demand.

    🗺 Cate stresses that suburbs are not homogenous—each street, pocket, and dwelling can vary widely. She’s seen investors buy sight-unseen in so-called “hot suburbs” only to end up with properties in undesirable streets or with hidden zoning issues. True due diligence goes beyond numbers to include lifestyle appeal, orientation, and neighbourhood quality. Dave reinforces a key point: just because a property sits within a “good” suburb doesn’t mean it’s a good purchase.

    🏖 The conversation shifts to Kent’s “Four Pillars” research—a balanced lifestyle scorecard that equally weights proximity to beach, nature, urban amenities, and family infrastructure. Mike explains how areas scoring well across all four pillars, such as parts of Warringah, Townsville, and Perth, show strong long-term fundamentals. Cate notes that lifestyle appeal often underpins resilience and growth over decades, not just during a boom cycle.

    🚩 As the trio wraps up, Cate’s biggest red flag is ultra-tight days on market compared with neighbouring suburbs—a sign that investor FOMO, (fear of missing out) may be inflating prices. Mike’s warning is to focus on supply constraints, like zoning or heritage overlays, which can underpin long-term capital growth. Dave wraps up the episode and encourages investors not to be fooled by cheap price tags or simplified stats. They should treat data as a conversation starter, not a final verdict, and prioritise properties that appeal to a broad base of owner-occupiers. Long-term fundamentals, lifestyle drivers, and thorough due diligence win every time.

    And our gold nuggets!.....

    Cate Bakos's gold nugget: Delve further if you are engaging a Buyers Agent who is reliant on this suburb data. Cate shares some good questions for consumers to ask.

    David Johnston's gold nugget: Dave delves into the psychology of property. What is it that makes people gravitate to particular suburbs and specific properties? "Whatever points someone might be making to you with a sea of data, the underlying principle is this: How many people in Australia would like to live in that property, in that street, in that location? That's going to drive up your rent and your value over the next ten, twenty, thirty years."

    Mike Mortlock's gold nugget: Mike talks about the necessity of understanding the growth drivers, (and specifically the owner-occupier appeal) of the investment purchase.

    Shownotes: https://www.propertytrio.com.au/2025/08/11/expert-tips-for-interpreting-data/
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    43 mins
  • #321: ATO Tax Stats Revealed - What They Mean for Investors, Income Earners and the Property Market

    #321: ATO Tax Stats Revealed - What They Mean for Investors, Income Earners and the Property Market
    Aug 4 2025
    Got a question for the trio? https://forms.zohopublic.com/propertyplanningaustralia/form/GotaquestionforthePropertyTrio/formperma/zYCQAxzE_24CVlDafP1ozyzwtmB-8m1iCNtCTgDvHXM

    🎙️ In this data-rich episode of The Property Trio, Cate and Mike dive deep into the just-released 2022–23 ATO Tax Stats. From personal income and superannuation to rental property outcomes and tax quirks, this episode sheds light on who’s winning — and who’s hurting — in Australia’s current economic environment. Cate and Mike have broken down this episode into five parts. We hope you enjoy!

    💰 Part 1: The Income Illusion The average taxable income is now $74,240 — but the median is only $55,868. That $18K gap shows how averages mask the reality for most Aussies. Cate explains how this affects outcomes and affordability, while Mike highlights the gender gap: Men earn $24k more than women on average.

    📉 Superannuation stats also expose a gender wealth divide:
    • Median male super: $68,568
    • Median female super: $54,349.
    It's not just about pay — it's about lost compounding interest benefits, care duties, and time out of the workforce.

    🏘️ Part 2: Who’s Actually Investing? 2.26 million Australians own rental property — but 72% of property investors own just one property.

    Only 0.85% of all property investors own six or more investment properties.

    🧮 And many are feeling the pinch:
    Nearly half of all investors (49.4%) recorded a net rental loss in 2022–23 — up from 41.9%. The pain is concentrated among small-scale investors. Over 120,000 individuals slipped from profit to loss in just one year.

    🧾 Part 3: Systemic Gaps and Hidden Structures The tax system favours those with higher incomes and good advice:
    • A $10k loss is far more valuable to someone earning $180k than $70k
    • 0.2% of individuals claimed 46% of capital gains
    • Many low-income investors don’t even claim depreciation
    🚺 Women miss out disproportionately due to lower incomes, fewer property holdings, and reduced access to professional financial advice.

    🧠 Part 4: Industry Takeaways Cate encourages buyers to educate themselves beyond property features. The property metrics are vital to success. From tax offsets, to depreciation, and ownership structures, there is more to property investing than just physical attributes. 📈 Mike reminds investors that they don’t need ten properties — just a well-structured one. Understanding your tax position and planning your post-tax cash flow is key.

    🔍 Part 5: What the Data Reveals
    • Median income is up slightly, but tax paid is up 16.6%
    • Small investors are under stress
    • Gender inequality remains stark
    • Tax rules reward those already ahead
    📊 This is essential listening for investors, advisors, and anyone who wants to understand the real financial picture behind the headlines.

    Shownotes: https://www.propertytrio.com.au/2025/08/04/latest-ato-stats-revealed/
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    46 mins
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