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Here's where that leaves you. From 10 August 2026, a self-managed super fund can only use a limited recourse borrowing arrangement to acquire real property where that property is business real property. New borrowing to buy residential investment property inside an SMSF is no longer permitted. If you've been told otherwise recently, the person telling you hasn't caught up.
Indicative only. Final capacity confirmed with a strategy call.
Entered into before 10 August 2026 are unaffected. Nothing needs to be unwound.
Also unaffected. Many of these loans were written years ago on a shrinking lender panel and have never been reviewed — worth checking what it's costing you.
Grandfathered, even where the contract settles or the LRBA is entered into after that date.
New LRBAs remain available where the property is land and buildings used wholly and exclusively in a business — most commonly a business owner's fund acquiring its own premises. This is the live path for new SMSF borrowing.
The change is to borrowing, not to what a fund may own. An SMSF acquiring residential property outright, without an LRBA, is unaffected.
The line matters, so we want to be precise about it.
What we do: arrange finance for a fund that has already decided, on proper advice, to acquire a property. Explain how an LRBA is structured and what lenders require. Review and refinance existing arrangements. Tell you what the current rules permit.
What we don't: advise you on whether to establish an SMSF, whether to roll money into one, or whether SMSF property is a suitable strategy for you. An interest in an SMSF is a financial product. Advice about acquiring one requires an Australian Financial Services Licence, which is a different licence to ours — so that conversation belongs with your financial adviser, and we'll say so every time.
We'd rather tell you where our advice stops than blur it.
Worth understanding before you start, because the structure drives the timeline.
The property is held in a separate holding trust (often called a bare trust), not directly by the fund. The fund holds the beneficial interest and the right to take legal ownership once the loan is repaid.
The lender's recourse is limited to the asset in that holding trust — the fund's other assets are protected if the loan defaults. That limited recourse is the whole point, and it's why lenders assess these files conservatively.
An LRBA covers a single acquirable asset, or a collection of identical assets. Separate titles generally mean separate arrangements.
Borrowed money may be used to acquire the asset and to repair and maintain it — but not to improve it. Improvements can be funded from the fund's own cash, provided they don't turn the asset into a different asset. The distinction has caught out more than one trustee mid-renovation.
There are no major banks in this space and there haven't been for years. SMSF lending is serviced by specialist and non-bank lenders, and the panel is smaller than it was — it had been expanding through early 2026, and the August change has reversed that direction.
Lenders typically expect a meaningful fund balance and a cash buffer retained after settlement. Requirements vary considerably between lenders and are moving at the moment, so we'll give you current figures for your fund rather than a general rule that may be out of date by the time you act on it.
Real broker access. Real strategy. Real outcomes.
The rules changed on 10 August 2026, and this page says so. Ask anyone else in this space what changed that day.
Which is where all of this lending now sits.
Grandfathered LRBAs are often old, expensive and unexamined. That review costs you nothing and sometimes finds real money.
Credit assistance, yes. Superannuation strategy, no — and we'll refer you rather than improvise.
Coordinated with your accountant, adviser and the fund's auditor.
Existing arrangement, grandfathered contract, or a new business real property purchase — the path is different for each.
Holding trust, trustee arrangements, and what your adviser and accountant have already set up.
From the specialist panel, matched to your fund's position.
Coordinated with your accountant, adviser and the fund's auditor.
30 minutes with Jeff or Moishe. If your fund holds an existing loan, the review is worth having regardless.
Jump into our live booking calendar and lock in a 30-minute strategy call with Jeff or Moishe — phone or video, whenever works for you.
Book a Call →Book a 30-minute strategy call. Free. No obligation. Talk to a real broker today.
Sources: Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026, Schedule 5 (assented 26 June 2026, commenced 10 August 2026); ATO, Changes to LRBAs for property from 10 August (updated 29 July 2026); ATO, About limited recourse borrowing arrangements; ATO, Business real property; ASIC, AFS licensing requirements for those providing SMSF services. General information only — not financial product, tax or credit advice. SMSF strategy and suitability are matters for your licensed financial adviser.