Seek specialists for SMSF property: PIPA

An alternative is to work on a referral basis so clients are still able to get specialised advice, PIPA chair Ben Kingsley said.

“The advisers are going to have to make a decision themselves in terms of whether they think they can upskill,” he said.

Kingsley added he would be confident in advisers doing that, but those who did not want to upskill could certainly outsource to a property specialist.

“If they do believe they have a fundamental understanding of how things grow in value and how they perform, then they could certainly look at doing it themselves and I would encourage them to do that,” he said.

It could, however, create an issue in terms of professional indemnity insurance, in which case advisers may need to consult at the dealer group level because they may not be able to give that kind of advice, Kingsley said.

He added that PIPA would welcome government consultation over regulations in the property advice area and suggested further tweaks to existing regulations would be needed.