Why this survey carries weight

The Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) has run this survey every year since 2015, and over that time it has become one of the most referenced datasets on investor behaviour in the country. Media outlets quote it. Policymakers request it. The results are shared directly with government and shadow cabinet representatives.

It is important to understand why that matters. Most of the commentary that shapes housing policy is written about investors rather than informed by them. Assumptions get repeated until they harden into accepted fact. The sentiment survey is one of the few instruments that tests those assumptions against what thousands of investors are actually doing and thinking.

Why this year matters more than most

The recent changes to longstanding negative gearing and capital gains tax settings have shifted the ground under every investor in the country. How investors respond to those changes, whether they hold, sell, restructure or step back from the market entirely, will shape rental supply and housing outcomes for years.

What we are seeing on the ground

At ASPIRE Property Advisor Network, the questions clients are asking have changed noticeably this year. Conversations that used to centre on where to buy now start with whether the framework still supports their strategy, how the tax changes affect their holding costs and what a sensible timeline looks like from here.

As Vice Chair of the PIPA board, I also see the other side of this exchange: how heavily media and government lean on this dataset once it is published. When PIPA sits down with policymakers, the strength of the argument rests on the depth of the responses behind it. That is why I take the survey myself every year and why I am asking you to do the same.

What your response contributes

• Strengthens PIPA's ability to advocate for balanced, evidence-based policy.
• Documents how regulation and taxation are affecting real investment decisions.
• Challenges assumptions about who Australian property investors actually are.
• Gives the sector a credible voice in conversations that would otherwise happen without it.

Every investor's position is different, but the value of being counted is the same for all of us.

Markets reward investors who stay informed and engaged, and the same is true of the policy environment those markets operate in. If you would like to understand how the current policy settings apply to your own position, we would be happy to guide you through it. Every portfolio is different, and the right next step depends on your goals, timing and borrowing position.