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A business owner’s failure to separate his or herself from the business entity is one of the biggest problems I see in small and medium-sized enterprises.
Total absorption in your business may feel necessary at times, but living like this affects financial performance as much as mental health.
Business owners are at their most efficient when they create and maintain a sort of critical distance from their business. Here are a few tips on how to do this:
Goals: When starting or buying a business, write down why you are doing it, what you want to get out of it and what will define “success”. You have to know the goal.
Structure: Separating the person from the business starts with structuring. Are you a company, a sole trader, a partnership, a trust? You should engage a solicitor and accountant before starting a business, and have the ramifications spelled out to you in terms of tax, equity, liability law, business sale, superannuation and a host of compliance issues.
Exit: Smart business owners don’t “love” their enterprises too much; they grow them like crops and ensure capital gain when they sell. This requires a clear division in your mind between yourself and your business. It also requires you have a system.
System: The separation of business and business owner often comes down to the creation of a system for creating revenues as opposed to simply having a hard-working owner at the helm. This not only makes your business more valuable to buyers and more reliable in the eyes of the banks, but it helps you become a more successful business owner. With systemised management structure, financial reporting, sales functions and client contracts, etc, you have the opportunity to work on the business rather than simply in it.
Liability: Separating yourself from the business requires correct structuring, so that the legal/financial liabilities of the business are not sitting on the shoulders of you and your family.
Protection: You need the right insurances not only for the business, but for you. You need insurance cover for your family, and also for your business: if you have staff, some sort of key person/business continuance cover is essential to ensure they are looked after. And if you have a family company and you’re the major shareholder, what is your continuance strategy and is it in your will?
Experts: The best way to ensure personal/business separation is to engage the right experts at the right time. External professionals focus on the issue and they chase results, which gives you – the owner – the chance to see the business through clear eyes, untainted by history, personalities or emotions.
What’s in it for me? You’re the one who works like a maniac, who loses your weekends and goes over the spreadsheets late into the night. You must have your reward. Whether you structure this as a salary, bonus or a dividend, you must be rewarded by the business. Your business doesn’t own you – you own the business.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ybr.com.au/">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance.
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How (and why) entrepreneurs can separate themselves from their businesses

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Through most of 2011 and the beginning of this year, the Australian economy has been hobbled by sentiment. Sentiment is so important for key measurements such as growth and employment. But sentiment is very hard to measure or put a value on.
In my business, we get a good feel for sentiment because the people we deal with are usually making serious decisions and they talk about why they are making them. And the feeling over the past 18 months has been marked by uncertainty, caution and a reluctance to commit.
When you’re running a household or a business and you have to juggle rising costs of living with employment concerns, new taxes and constant reports of a European crisis, it’s understandable that people have lost their confidence.
The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment has been running very low this year. The June Index showed Australians were 1.7% less confident last month than they were in October 2011, despite interest rate cuts since then totalling 125 basis points.
So it was with a glimmer of optimism that I saw two signs this week of perhaps a small turnaround in sentiment.
Firstly, we saw positive house value data creeping back into the numbers. Home values rebounded one percent in June, according to RP Data-Rismark. Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane each rose 1%; Perth and Canberra boasted a 2% increase. Hobart reported the biggest rise for June at 2.7%.
It was a welcome mini-comeback for house values after the all-capital cities index fell -1.4% in May.
It suggests that the two interest rate cuts from the RBA in May and June have at least given some impetus to the genuine buyers who have been holding off.
The second sign I saw this week was from the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ building approvals for May 2012.
It showed a rebound in apartment building approvals, up 45% on approvals in May 2011. The downside was that approvals for houses had gone backwards by 7.7%.
So the fact that the RBA held the cash rate at 3.5% last week, along with the small bounce in some housing numbers, creates a sense that we might be at the bottom of this real estate market. With rates on hold after two cuts, and house values improving slightly, we could be a good time to buy.
It’s also a good time to refinance: since 1990 the official interest rate has only been lower than 3.5% between February and October 2009. So whatever is happening in China or Europe, this is a low-interest rate era of history. This is good for buyers and good for mortgage holders.
There is nothing wrong with waiting for the bottom of the market and low interest rates. But it isn’t caution I worry about – it’s inaction caused by fear.
A comeback in sentiment will start when enough people see a depressed real estate market as a good time to buy, rather than evidence of doom.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. 
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This could be the bottom of the real estate market and a good time to buy property

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These last few years have been confusing for Australians thinking about retirement: when they look at what the experts have done with their money, they see it going backwards, or growing very slowly.
The 2010-11 APRA figures over the decade to June 2011 show that the average return in large super funds was 3.8%per year. That was the overall average: retail funds earned just 2.9%. After accounting for inflation, which has averaged about 3% over the same period, savers have received little-to-no “real” return.
One of the standard “expert” remarks about investing is that you have to skew your super to higher-returning equities, or you won’t have enough to retire on. But global shares suffered 40-50% losses in 1987, 2001, and again in 2007-08.
The other extreme is to ask you to accept very low returns on your money for little or no risk.
I believe in a “middle way” solution: a portfolio comprising a mix of short-term bank accounts and term deposits combined with variable rate bonds.
By diversifying your portfolio across these investments, the risk you are taking is not much higher than cash and much lower than equities – while receiving very attractive returns.
Many big fund managers and most financial planners do not steer their clients into these products. While many offer bond-based products, when you select the ‘default’ setting in your super fund, you are normally placed in a “balanced fund”, which typically gives you a total exposure to cash and bonds of not much more than 10%.
In other words, the super option most Australians are in – “balanced” – will have you about 80% to 90% exposed to Australian shares, global shares, and “equity” risk in commercial property, private companies, and hedge funds.
Recently, one of our branch principals at Yellow Brick Road dealt with a retiree in Queensland with $800,000 in a bank account, earning less than 2% per annum. By putting his cash into a portfolio that exposed him to both institutional bank accounts and variable-rate Australian bank bonds, this retiree will now earn an extra $25,000 per annum.
Another case is a Sydney family who sold an investment property and needed to park $705,000 before they bought another home in six to 12 months’ time. This family was going to put the money in a bank’s “bonus” savings account paying 5.2% for a few months, which then dropped to a very low 3.5%.
Instead, they will now likely earn an extra $9,000 per annum by investing in a diversified portfolio of bank deposits and bonds.
The point I try to get across to those who are worried about retirement – or who are unhappily retired – is that they have to get their minds out of the approach of 100% or 100% bank accounts.
There are smarter solutions out there for you. Start by becoming informed, and always get advice before you act.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. 
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A smart savings portfolio comprises property, bonds, bank accounts and term deposits

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The end of financial year isn’t only about tax. It’s an opportunity to look at your business and make changes. Here’s my eight-part template for fine-tuning a business.
Goals: along with the financial targets – earnings, margins, market share, etc. – are goals such as how to set goals for your employees and how to define what success is within your business. And never forget about the owner’s goals: you have to know what kind of income and fulfilment you desire.
Knowledge: how good are your systems? Do they give you clear and regular reporting? Do they give you measurements against your key performance indicators? Do you use all of your enterprise system’s capability? Do you need a new system, or do you simply need to know more about the system you currently run?
Funding: it’s time to assess your debt, retained earnings and equity. Whether it’s equity or debt, capital comes at a cost, and you should look at how it’s performing and what needs to change in budgeting, dividends and cashflow discipline.
Protection: business owners often overlook basics such as insurances, disaster recovery plans and contingencies for business continuance. If you employ people, they and their families are vulnerable should anything happen to the business or to you. Your family may also rely on you. Have a plan, talk to experts.
Environment: What broader environment is the business is operating in? What is the Reserve Bank saying? Where are interest rates heading? What is happening to your competitors? Is the government talking about your industry? What foreign forces will affect your business? Every owner can start a new financial year with a brief written outline of where his or her business sits in the economy.
Structure: business owners can go for years with a structure that is wrong for the business, inefficient for tax or inflexible in terms of succession. It’s worth having an accountant or solicitor look at your structure. The law provides you with options in how you carry on a business, and you should ensure you are in the structure that best suits you and your plans.
Growth: what did you do in 2011/12 to grow the business? Did it work? This is the time to look at growth strategies. Get your people in one room and listen to ideas – often the best ideas come from the people who are never asked.
Owner: in the end, there has to be a pay-off for the owner. You need an insurance broker to ensure you have products that cover you as a director, you need advice on separate business/personal finances and you should be converting your hard work into a retirement plan with some of the superannuation exemptions and concessions available to business owners, including CGT relief and self-managed super.
A lot of these matters are overlooked in the course of doing business. Use the end of financial year to at least give them some thought.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ybr.com.au/">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. 
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An eight-step guide to fine-tuning a business

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The government ensures that employers put 9% of your earnings into a qualifying superannuation fund.
But then what? Most Australians have no idea how the financial markets operate. This has been made more difficult by the global financial crisis, and in the past few years Australians in typical superannuation funds have gone backwards.
One problem I see is that most Australians select the “default” option in their industry fund, which means a member’s money is put into a ‘balanced’ fund. Balanced might suggest your fund is split into quarters of fixed interest, property, cash and equities.
But look at an Australian “balanced” fund at a big fund manager and you’ll find they have around 60% in equities, 15% in property, 10-13% in cash and 10-13% in fixed interest (government and corporate bonds).
When you have 60% of your retirement savings in equities – half of which is volatile global shares – then you’re unwittingly on a roller coaster.
Fund managers are fond of telling us that after every financial crisis, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rises again, to new heights.
However, when it comes to the GFC, the finance world might be reordering itself permanently into a more conservative outlook, and retirement plans based on annual returns of 10% are unrealistic.
Secondly, the theory of the unbeatable Dow doesn’t take account of timing. Retirees don’t get to hang on in the volatile share markets until their shares regain lost ground. They need funds to live on.
So a balanced fund should be more weighted to fixed-interest investments – at the expense of equities – because the bond markets are more stable than the equities markets and they spin off regular interest payments. Since 1980 Australian government bonds have made the same returns to investors as Aussie shares, but with nowhere near the volatility. Corporate bonds have returned more than Aussie shares.
Just so no one thinks I’m alone on this, remember that David Murray (chair of the Future Fund), Ken Henry (former treasury secretary), ASIC chair Greg Medcraft and former minister of finance Lindsay Tanner have all wondered at Australian fund managers’ lack of interest in fixed interest.
So what do you do?
My first recommendation would be to see a financial adviser and ask about fixed-interest investments. Secondly, approach your fund manager and inquire about a better risk-return equation. He or she might have a better fund for you, with a stronger weighting to fixed interest.
Thirdly, have you thought about your own self managed super fund (SMSF). You probably need $200,000 in super to make it worth it, and you need the right accountants and solicitors.
But an SMSF allows you to invest where you want, which means you select your own risk-return formula.
Whichever way you chose to take control, remember: it’s your super – it’s your retirement.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
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Equities are more volatile than property or fixed-interest assets in super funds

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Lower costs for mortgages, car finance and credit cards suit households, but business owners might see it differently. Sure, a lower cash rate means a lower cost of capital. But a rate reduction means the RBA is forecasting some hits to the Australian economy and is reducing the cost of money so that the economy will keep breathing when these threats materialise.
From a business owner’s viewpoint a weakening economy translates to fewer orders, less work, lower revenues and reduced business activity. A reduction in interest rates means a slowing economy.
This puts our business community in a nervous state, which is no good. I would make two points about the current situation. Firstly, while the RBA’s rate reductions of 0.75 percentage points in two months means there’s a potential slowdown on the way, the Aussie economy is actually very strong.
We have low unemployment by the standards of developed economies, our currency is strong, we have very low government debt as a percentage of GDP, and our biggest trade partners are developing nations, whose economies are forecast to grow rapidly.
Perhaps our greatest strength and weakness is our cash rate. At 3.5%, it is significantly higher than comparable economies such as Canada, US, eurozone and Japan, which have cash rates ranging from 1% to effectively zero.
Australian business owners face higher capital costs than their global counterparts. However, the strength of this higher interest rate policy is that the central bank in Australia has the room to stimulate the economy by monetary policy rather than by inflationary fiscal stimulus.
The central banks in other developed economies have already reduced their official rates to rock bottom – their only economic stimulus option is now fiscal, and some of them are simply printing money to achieve this.
The second point is that the RBA can force interest rates to go as low as it requires.
The major banks’ variable interest rates were in lock-step with the RBA during the Howard and Rudd governments, but this no longer occurs. This creates volatility, which feeds into one of the most important factors influencing business owners: sentiment.
Sentiment can turn an economy for better or worse, and business owners generally have stronger sentiment when they feel the certainty to make informed decisions. This is particularly the case when it comes to borrowing to expand, the lifeblood of economic growth.
Even when official interest rates were rising through 2010 and 2011, business owners could make a decision about capital costs based on the Reserve Bank.
It worries me that Aussie business owners will hesitate because they don’t know what official interest rates mean to banks’ rates.
Perhaps the Reserve could look at changes of 0.3 or 0.4 percentage piont, in order to shift variable rates to where they have to be?
With 2.7 million business owners in this country, the last thing we should be doing is confusing them about the cost of money.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
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Falling interest rates helps households but hurts business

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Last week I hosted a business seminar that allowed me to speak to people on Main Street and see the current environment through their eyes. There is understandably quite a bit of confusion and hesitation among business owners looking to grow and manage their businesses effectively, so I thought I’d go back to basics and talk a bit about strategies and setting up for success.
Firstly, have a plan: A plan can change and it can be improved as you move forward, but without it you really don’t have a sense of where you’re trying to go. You need a plan.
A plan should start with your goals. This should include a clear sense of what you want from your business – financially, professionally and personally. I have known people who have focused on simply one of these, and they’ve become demotivated. You must define how much money you want to earn from this enterprise; you must have a clear goal about what kind of professional glory you are pursuing; and you should define personal happiness before starting a business.
A plan must also include marketing plans, key employees, financial and corporate structures, protections such as insurances and a really good system that tells you if you’re succeeding.
This last one is something that many first-time business owners ignore. However, adopting key performance indicators and judging your business against them is crucial. It’s the method by which you judge whether the plan is working.
Your plan should also delineate shareholders, investors, partners and the exit strategy.
I advise business owners to think carefully about whom they take on as a partner or investor – the right partner can be the best thing you ever did because that person can be a mentor, a war buddy and someone to share the pain and the wealth with. You want a good partner, but you want to be a good partner, too. The same goes for investors – the best one may not be the one with the most money, but the best contacts and the most experience.
And then there’s exit strategy. Anyone who’s already owned a business will tell you that it’s worth thinking about your exit before you start a business. Many business ventures end in organised liquidation, trade sale or internal buy-out. And how that works is dependent on the structure and decisions about shareholding and rights, etc.
It’s worth discussing this with your accountant or solicitor before starting a business. And I always advise business owners to state in their plan what value they want to build the business to. That is to say, if a large business were to bid to buy your business, what price would you want and what kind of sale would you want?
Once you start planning for these goals, you realise that you have to make certain structural decisions before you start the business.
So I think very highly of planning. I’ve started, invested in and sold many businesses and I’ll do it all again in the future. And I don’t take any serious steps until I have a plan – a road map for success.
Lastly, let me give you a good template for a business owner’s personality: work, play, fight, love, believe.
You must want to work, you must plan for downtime away from work, you must be prepared to fight for what’s right and for your business, you must have a love or a passion for what you’re doing, and you must arise each morning with a ton of belief in what you’re doing and where you’re going.
Good luck!
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
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To build a successful business, know your goals and your exit strategy

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Don’t you get sick of hearing about the importance of the resources sector?
I’m looking at a different kind of gold mine: the thousands of Australians with a good idea and the desire to start a new enterprise. These are people who will put it all on the line to pursue something new and innovative, yet most of them can’t get the support they need in this country.
The excellent story by Asher Moses in the Sydney Morning Herald a little over a week ago that highlighted the number of young Australians taking their ideas to Silicon Valley because they can’t get a start here really annoyed me.
Why? Because the real “resources” sector in this country is our people. The minds of our young people is where the national wealth and economic growth of the next 50 years is going to come from.
Yes, the current minerals boom is putting wealth in our pockets. But when the stuff in the ground dries up, <country-region>Australia</country-region> will need what has always sustained the <country-region><place>US</place></country-region> economy, and that is innovation, patents, high technology, medical advances, miracle drugs, etc.
The real test of an economy that wants entrepreneurs is what they call the “commercialisation” phase.
Commercialisation must support both the entepreneur and the investor. The entrepreneur needs investment and expertise and the investor needs to manage their risk and boost their capital gains.
Entrepreneurs typically get their finance from debt or equity.
But in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region>, banks do not like high-risk loans or loans to people lacking in a business track record. And our equity investors typically prefer to invest in entrepreneurs who are in expansion mode rather than start-up because our tax laws do not make the risk of the start-up worth the reward.
Corporations may be interested in an innovation, but they shy from equity investment because of corporate governance issues.
This leaves the role of government which should be allowing the right taxation, banking and regulatory environment for entrepreneurs and their investors. We have to allow talented entrepreneurs to find the money, not to have governments create cash bonanzas so long as you invent what they want.
The Commonwealth Treasury, in its research paper Measuring Entrepreneurship, found that the European government emphasis on investing in R&amp;D at universities and corporations during the 1980s and 1990s had not resulted in the expected increase in economic growth. The “critical link” between R&amp;D and economic growth was entrepreneurship.
We have the talent in this country, and a new generation is finding ways to make their dreams a reality. But they need the education and the opportunity – they need advice. I’m hosting a business seminar this week, and I’ve been inundated with questions from smart young business minds who are looking for answers. So I am going to help.
<country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> is turning out a new breed of entrepreneur that will be the future of this country and we need to do right by them… or lose them.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
Mark is hosting the Secrets to Business Success Seminar on Wednesday 30 May in Parramatta. For more information visit <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/seminar">www.ybr.com.au/seminar</a>
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The real resources sector in Australia is our entrepreneurs: Mark Bouris

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Professional investors understand that you can’t outsmart the market. It’s a lesson worth remembering if you’re looking at refinancing a loan with a fixed-rate loan.
Some borrowers have legtimate reasons to want fixed costs of capital. But there are other types of borrowers who believe that they will gain an advantage by taking a fixed rate loan.
We saw this happen in March when, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the number of fixed-rate mortgages soared to 14.5% of the total mortgage market, the highest ratio since May 2008.
A flat economy (in the southern and eastern states), and a pause on official interest rate movements, pushed many Australians into the “safe” option because banks were offering fixed rates about 0.5 percentage points under their variable rates.
But the large numbers of borrowers refinancing into a fixed-rate loan in March were not to know that the Reserve Bank, on May 1, would cut the cash rate by 0.5 percentage points. They didn’t gain advantage at all.
Mortgage holders are generally best served by the variable-rate system, because you are following the market price of mortgages and you can operate with the same basic information available to everyone.
To find the best deal on a variable-rate loan, go to a comparison web site and look at the “comparison rate” column.
Then, focus on the loan margins. Start with your own variable home loan rate and subtract the cash rate, which you can find at the Reserve Bank’s home page.
So, if your loan is 6.75% and the cash rate is 3.75%, the margin you are paying is 3%.
Now, look at another lender’s variable rate. If they have a loan at 6.25%, then the margin they are charging is only 2.5%.
By thinking in terms of the loan margin, you get a better feel for the market.
The best part about variable rate loans is that while a fixed rate locks you in for a term, variable rate loans are flexible; lenders cannot charge exit fees when a borrower leaves a home loan, so there is no penalty for refinancing.
Refinancing is certainly worth it. Say you have a home loan with a bank and have a current variable interest rate of 6.99% on a $350,000 loan. You look around and decide to refinance to a 5.99% loan.
The savings in that one percentage point would be $59,223 over the life of the loan. If you refinanced and kept your repayments at the same rate as your repayments in the original loan, you’d actually save $129,143.
Some people are not comfortable researching the mortgage market, and for them I recommend expert advice in the form of a mortgage broker.
It doesn’t matter how you come to refinance, the trick is be informed and to be prepared to act. In most cases, the lender you are leaving will try to reduce you interest rate to make you stay.
It’s nice to feel wanted!
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
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Refinancing your home loan is usually worth it

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The budget showed that the Labor government intends to win back its traditional voters by pushing money to households through tax cuts and cash bonuses for school children.
But although the budget seemed politically smart, it was built on assumptions rather than certainties.
The primary assumption is that the current government will still be the government in 2013 and beyond. Some of the accounting tricks and new revenue programs used to put the 2012-13 budget in surplus require that the government who put them in place will still have its hands on the levers.
In the current environment, that’s a hopeful assumption.
Secondly, the improved budget position is expected to come about because of cuts to government spending and an increase in tax receipts driven by next year’s expected growth rate of 3.25%.
Strong growth is going to be driven mainly by the mining sector because sectors such as retail, hospitality and manufacturing are not doing well. Yet many factors can arise to change growth forecasts and it will only take one sector of the economy to stumble – mining – and all bets are off.
Thirdly, there’s a raft of carbon tax-related initiatives that have been factored into the budget estimates but the one to watch is the so-called ‘carbon price’ of $29 a tonne.
This represents revenue to the Commonwealth, but the more I read about this carbon price the more it becomes apparent that it is not necessarily the price that will be paid by businesses. In fact, carbon emissions are currently being traded in Europe at below $10 per tonne and the momentum is for even cheaper carbon prices.
So, $29 per tonne actually being levied on Australian emitters is not a given.
Lastly is the Treasurer’s forecast that official interest rates will decrease into 2013. This will apparently stimulate the economy.
Even if the assumption on interest rates is accurate, it’s not entirely consistent with an economy growing at 3.25%.
When the economy grows at 3.25% and household consumption is growing by 3% (as forecast) the Reserve Bank will act to stop inflation. And that will mean interest rates go up.
And we should all be concerned about the 1% reduction in company tax promised to business owners that the government abandoned on budget night.
If you base the coming-right of the economy on strong growth in 2013, then you’d expect Australia’s 2.7 million small business owners, who employ 60% of the workforce, to play some part in that.
I know that the government places their faith in an ongoing resources boom but that still leaves about 85% of the economy who are flat or going backwards.
Many householders will be happy with this budget, but can I suggest that everyone who receives their schoolkids bonus spend it wisely? The world economy is going through a structural change and our best defence – along with surplus budgets – is an educated population.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ybr.com.au/">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance. He runs a <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/markbouris" target="_blank">Q&amp;A session on Twitter</a> every Monday afternoon at 4pm for small business owners using the hashtag #bizQandA.
 
 
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Federal budget was politically smart but built on hopeful assumptions

A who's who of Australian surfing, business and entertainment has emerged on title records following the completion of Esprit Rainbow Bay, the latest boutique beachfront apartment development by former professional surfer Paul Gedoun's S&amp;S Projects.

The completed project has attracted an enviable collection of owners, many with long-standing ties to the southern Gold Coast and the surf culture that has helped define Rainbow Bay and neighbouring Kirra for generations.

Given Gedoun's own background in surfing, it perhaps comes as little surprise that some of Australia's most recognisable surfers have chosen to buy into the development overlooking one of the country's most celebrated stretches of coastline.

Pezet Matheson directors Jayde Pezet and Todd Matheson launched the project in late 2021, and have managed the sales campaign all the way through to its sell-out and recent completion.

<img alt="Esprit" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="08fc6261-b84e-4b09-8a44-66d3067fd0d1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%208.51.05%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=4AOcb6ETZwNUnMPdTtz1B3pZAIB_jgZ2" />

Former world champion Mick Fanning, who grew up in Coolangatta, secured an apartment in 2023. He paid&nbsp;$2.07 million. Last year he sold his Bilinga home for over $16 million.

Three-time world champion Joel Parkinson also purchased in the development, alongside big wave surfer Mark Mathews. Mathews bought the most expensive apartment in the building, spending just over $4 million.

Joining them is Rip Curl founder Doug Warbrick, whose company helped shape Australia's global surfing industry over the past five decades.

The appeal of Rainbow Bay has extended well beyond the surfing community.

International DJ Paul Fisher purchased an apartment through his investment vehicle, YLB Developments, an abbreviation of his trademark phrase "You Little Beauty".

The purchase comes as Fisher and his wife Chloe are developing their own luxury apartment project further north in Palm Beach. Their boutique beachfront development, Pescado, comprises just seven apartments on Jefferson Lane, which start from just shy of $6 million. The couple intend to retain the two-level penthouse as their Australian base between international touring commitments.

Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy and his wife Wendy have also invested in Esprit, purchasing two apartments after spending decades holidaying on the southern Gold Coast. They also have a luxury apartment in Joe Adsett's Rockpool, less than 400m away from Esprit.

<h2>Boutique project draws owner-occupiers</h2>

Esprit launched in 2021 and sold strongly, with buyers drawn to its boutique scale, beachfront position and contemporary design.

The completed development comprises 94 apartments across 11 levels, offering expansive floorplans designed primarily for owner-occupiers rather than the investor market.

Crowning the building is Club Esprit, pitched as being the Gold Coast's first residential rooftop wellness centre. The roof features a&nbsp;25 metre magnesium lap pool, which is surrounded by wet daybeds and poolside cabanas,&nbsp;multiple barbecue areas,&nbsp;a yoga and relaxation play lawn, and a private dining room with a kitchen scullery, bar, lounges, and an outdoor terrace.

The wellness centre is&nbsp;fully equipped with a Technogym, ice bath, infra-red sauna, steam room, thermal room, and treatment room. The roof has views spanning&nbsp;Rainbow Bay, Snapper Rocks and the Pacific Ocean.

<h2>S&amp;S Projects continues to shape Rainbow Bay</h2>

S&amp;S Projects founder Paul Gedoun has become one of the key figures behind Rainbow Bay's evolution over the past several years.

After establishing S&amp;S Projects, Gedoun has focused on delivering lifestyle-driven apartment developments designed primarily for owner-occupiers seeking a permanent coastal home.

Esprit is Gedoun's third completed project in Rainbow Bay, following Flow and Awaken, both of which achieved record prices for the suburb.

He is now delivering <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/radia-rainbow-bay-271-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Radia Rainbow Bay</a>, a 38-apartment development on Boundary Street that is currently selling, and has no plans to leave the precinct anytime soon. S&amp;S Projects has also lodged plans for its fifth Rainbow Bay development, an 88-apartment project on Boundary Street featuring a strong wellness focus.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/first-look-s-s-projects-proposes-88-apartment-wellness-tower-at-coolangattas-boundary-street">First look: S&amp;S Projects proposes 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street</a>

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Joel Robinson

Who's who of buyers revealed as Esprit Rainbow Bay settles

Nature Based Cities (NBC), the not-for-profit organisation focused on improving biodiversity and nature outcomes in urban development, has launched its latest industry design guidelines and accreditation framework, this time targeting precinct-scale residential communities.

The move extends NBC’s influence beyond its initial focus on medium and high-density residential developments. Several projects have already achieved NBC accreditation since the launch of its Medium &amp; High-Density Residential Guidelines in early 2025.

The expansion into masterplanned communities and new residential precincts reflects the growing need for stronger nature-positive benchmarks as Australia’s outer suburban growth corridors continue to expand at pace.

Paul Hameister OAM, NBC Founder and the Executive Chairman of Melbourne developer Hamton who itself leans heavily into nature and biodiversity in its developments, says the&nbsp;nature-first approach to mitigate the effects of climate change has become standard in other parts of the world such as the UK, but Australia is lagging.&nbsp;Australia’s environmentally sustainable design (ESD) rating tools have no minimum mandatory requirements for living landscapes.

“We’ve always wanted to do more, and we know other developers who want to do more, but the ESD rating tools just aren’t there,” Hameister says. “In Australia, you can have a five-green-star rated building that’s concrete and glass with not a blade of grass. 
 
“The focus is on reducing emissions, which is laudable, but there hasn’t been enough attention paid to protecting and re-establishing nature. We need both for the health of the environment and for communities.”

He says that having now&nbsp;made good progress in supporting developers of medium and high-density residential projects, NBC is now looking to bolster better nature-based decision-making and recognise developers of greenfield projects in the outer ring and large inner-ring brownfield precincts, who want to champion nature and living landscape as a defining feature.

Since 2022, the not-for-profit has sought to remove the roadblocks preventing developers from incorporating nature and living landscapes into their projects, shifting the conversation from the reduction of emissions and grey infrastructure, toward recognising nature as an essential infrastructure.

The New Communities Design Guidelines and Scorecard arm developers with the tools needed to deliver a nature positive outcome for their new communities. Intended to be adopted at the outset of the planning process, the guidelines are designed to help create communities that are cooler, healthier and more resilient while also enhancing social wellbeing and long-term economic value.&nbsp;

New Communities developers seeking accreditation will be independently assessed across a range of key criteria including ecology, tree canopy, biodiversity, and walkability. Once the masterplan is complete and submitted for approval, the scorecard is formalised based on proposed outcomes. Projects that meet the NBC criteria will receive either Commended or Exemplary accreditation outcomes, creating a clear benchmark for nature-positive new communities in Australia.&nbsp;

Janis Fischer, Director at Tract and NBC Advisory Council member, said the development of new communities in our suburbs can have a substantial impact on nature and biodiversity.

"By incorporating nature-based design principles at the inception of a project, developers and their design teams can achieve nature positive outcomes that are good for both people and the planet.’’&nbsp;

NBC accredited New Community projects will gain access to NBC branding and marketing tools to help communicate their nature-based credentials to purchasers and the broader market.&nbsp;

Nature Based Cities: A new Australian benchmark for developing nature-positive new communities

Apartment buildings are increasingly being designed around how people actually live day to day, not just how they want a building to look.

For buyers, that shift is showing up in practical inclusions that respond to changing habits. Work-from-home spaces, EV charging, wellness amenities, secure bike storage and parcel management are becoming part of the broader apartment conversation, reflecting a move toward buildings that reduce friction in everyday life.

Online shopping has become one of the clearest examples of that change.

Australians spent a record $82.6 billion online in 2025, with nearly one in four retail dollars now spent online. That has made parcel delivery a regular part of apartment living, rather than an occasional inconvenience.

For apartment residents, however, the delivery process can be less straightforward than it is for detached homes. Parcels may be left in lobbies, redirected to Post Offices, missed entirely, or placed under the responsibility of building managers and concierge teams.

That is why secure parcel infrastructure is increasingly being considered alongside more familiar apartment amenities.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-VjjLwoViX0?si=A3k7ws9NX35Uac7_" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Australia Post Parcel Lockers offer one way to address the issue. When a parcel arrives, residents receive a notification through the AusPost app or SMS, then collect it using a QR code or one-time PIN. The parcel is kept secure, accessible and removed from common areas.

The broader Parcel Locker network now includes more than 1,500 locations across Australia, positioned at Post Offices, shopping centres, supermarkets, transport hubs and other accessible locations.

For new apartment projects, the relevance is clear. A building’s amenity offering is no longer only about lifestyle spaces, but also about convenience, security and functionality.

As buyer expectations evolve, secure parcel delivery is becoming part of the same design conversation as flexible working, sustainable transport and resident wellbeing.

It is one less thing for residents to worry about, and another example of apartment design adapting to the way Australians now live.

Apartment design is adapting to the way Australians shop

While school holidays and trips to Europe tend to define the winter property market, there's been no cold snap at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-walden-north-sydney-177-walker-street-north-sydney-nsw-2060">The Walden</a> in North Sydney.

Developer-builder&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aland">ALAND</a> sold more than $35 million worth of apartments throughout June, including a $6.8 million apartment that now ranks among the highest apartment sales ever recorded in North Sydney.

SRM Residential agent Ben Stewart said buyer demand throughout June reflected a mix of improving market confidence and longer-term thinking from owner-occupiers.

"We're seeing strong demand from owner-occupiers who are taking a longer-term view," Stewart said.

"Many recognise the opportunity to secure an apartment in an iconic building and premium location while values remain attractive. They may initially lease the property, but the intention is to eventually move in themselves, rather than purchasing purely as an investment."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=367129]

Located at 177 Walker Street, The Walden will deliver 161 one, two, three and four-bedroom residences across a 30-storey tower designed by Rothelowman. Every apartment occupies a corner position, maximising natural light, cross ventilation and views across Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, Sydney Heads and the northern districts.

Rather than a traditional balcony, the residences feature winter gardens that seamlessly extend the open plan living areas, creating versatile spaces for relaxing or entertaining throughout the year. Floor-to-ceiling glazing draws in natural light while showcasing sweeping views from the building's elevated Walker Street position.

Every apartment features high-end Calacatta marble, bespoke joinery, and fully integrated appliances.

The larger residences have been planned with distinct entertaining and private zones, with many master suites positioned on corners to capture natural light and harbour views. Walk-in dressing rooms, freestanding baths and refined stone finishes reinforce the house-like feel that has resonated with downsizers and owner-occupiers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6393]

Rothelowman Principal Ben Pomroy said the project was designed to make the most of its unique position overlooking the harbour.

"The Walden is a celebration of all things beautiful, curated for those who expect nothing less than exceptional," Pomroy says.

"Meticulously designed entertaining spaces and light-filled living areas that capitalise on capturing the natural beauty of Sydney's iconic harbour."

Residents will also have exclusive access to The Pavilion, a dedicated amenity building featuring a rooftop pool, wellness studio, gymnasium, sauna, concierge service, residents' lounge, private dining spaces and work-from-home facilities.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6402]

The project marks ALAND's first major luxury apartment development in Sydney's inner-city market after more than two decades delivering residential communities across Greater Sydney.

Founder and CEO Andrew Hrsto previously said the rarity of the Walker Street site made it an opportunity the company could not overlook.

"This is a rare opportunity to bring a truly exceptional project to life in one of Sydney's most iconic locations, and to showcase our craftsmanship and design expertise at a world-class level," Hrsto said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6383]

The Walden has been introduced to the market at a time when demand for living in North Sydney is at an all-time high. Billions of dollars have been invested in infrastructure, including the recently opened Victoria Cross Metro station, located just 300 metres from The Walden, providing residents with direct access to the Sydney CBD in just minutes.

Private investment has also transformed the area through the arrival of new retail and dining destinations, elevating the lifestyle offering in what was once considered primarily a commercial precinct rather than an aspirational residential address.

The Walden is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=134323]

ALAND records $35 million in sales in North Sydney as The Walden bucks quiet winter selling season

The long-awaited redevelopment of the former Eastlakes Shopping Centre site has reached a major milestone, with Conquest's plans for a new mixed-use precinct officially placed on public exhibition.

The State Significant Development Application would transform the 1.7-hectare site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/19a-evans-avenue-eastlakes-nsw-2018">19A Evans Avenue</a> into one of Sydney's largest urban renewal projects, delivering 736 apartments above a new shopping centre anchored by Woolworths, alongside specialty retail, dining, commercial space and new public open spaces.

The public exhibition marks the next chapter for the project after <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/conquest">Conquest</a> acquired the stalled Stage Two development from Crown Group, who completed the first stage across the road prior to their voluntary liquidation.

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5fca22c5-d1ed-4e2c-8801-03f7df1eafc8" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland%20podium.png?VersionId=uomwr41nF8CmLUZRDcu3mHQechlbxucS" />

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Designed by DKO Architecture, the proposal comprises four residential buildings ranging from 14 to 18 storeys above a two-level retail podium. The development would deliver 736 apartments, including 74 affordable homes, 215 Build-to-Rent apartments and 521 market residences. Provision has also been made for dual-key apartments, which could increase the total number of dwellings to 877.

At ground level, the shopping centre has been designed as the suburb's new meeting place, anchored by a full-line Woolworths and complemented by a curated mix of fresh food retailers, cafés, restaurants, health services and everyday convenience shopping. Generous pedestrian links and landscaped public spaces will connect the retail precinct through to Jack Mundey Reserve, creating a more walkable and connected neighbourhood.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

"Eastlakes has been overlooked for too long, and this is the community’s moment. We are building a shopping centre and homes, a genuine heart for the suburb, and we genuinely want locals to help shape it."

"We enrich communities through the creation of homes, places, and experiences designed for life, built to last, and owner for generations. That starts with listening, so we warmly encourage everyone with a connection to Eastlakes to view the plans and share their thoughts."

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="22f6fb20-54fb-4bd7-8a92-48fafdd00608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland.png?VersionId=cugp7s9hrMHGJJdYzkeAkrFoQgnF4GXf" />

DKO said the design had been shaped by the site's landscape setting and surrounding open space.

"Our vision for the site embraces its unique Bidjigal identity by blending the residential living with generous landscaping and a material palette inspired by the Bidjigal locality, and celebrating the panoramic views to Botany Bay and the wetlands reserves."

"Taking cues from Country, we seek to harmonise built form with the landscape and lightly touch the earth. By reconnecting, retaining and regenerating existing ecology, and weaving in natural elements, we can deepen our connection to Country."

The landscape strategy extends across the podium and rooftops, incorporating communal gardens, children's play areas, lawns, community gardens, family gathering spaces and extensive tree planting. New landscaped links will also strengthen the connection between the precinct and Jack Mundey Reserve, while publicly accessible open spaces have been integrated throughout the development.

The proposal builds on Conquest's broader placemaking strategy for the site. Through an ongoing partnership, local artist Joe Rashbrook has been appointed Urban Art Curator, working alongside young residents to transform the project's site hoardings into a public art gallery that allows the community to engage with the redevelopment before construction is complete.

Conquest has rapidly expanded its development pipeline since acquiring the Eastlakes site, with more than $6 billion worth of mixed-use projects now in planning across Sydney, including Stanmore, Castlecrag and Waterloo.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

Mark Bouris

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