Trad faces $50k hit on ‘set-price’ house sale

Deputy Premier Jackie Trad could suffer a cash hit over her husband’s investment property.

Queensland Deputy Premier Jackie Trad. Picture: AAP

Queensland Deputy Premier Jackie Trad could suffer a $50,000 cash hit over her husband’s investment property after vowing to sell it for the same price that their family company paid for it.

The Crime and Corruption Commission is investigating allegations Ms Trad did not publicly declare the purchase of the inner-Brisbane house, which could rise in value thanks to its proximity to the Treasurer’s signature infrastructure project, the Cross River Rail.

Days after Ms Trad and husband Damien Van Brunschot’s family company, VBT Investments, bought the three-­bedroom Woolloongabba home, Ms Trad and Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk signed off on the final route of the Cross River Rail, and chose which companies would build it.

Ms Trad promised last month to “sell the property at the same price as it was purchased … in order to remove any doubt”.

Property industry sources say the move is likely to leave Ms Trad and Mr Van Brunschot out of pocket in the short term.

Property records show VBT Investments, as trustee for the VB Family Trust, bought the property for $695,500 on March 27 and settled on April 26.

It is estimated they would have paid $24,300 in transfer duty on top of the purchase price, as well as conveyancing and legal fees.

When it is sold — after the CCC finishes its assessment and possible investigation — the ­couple will have to pay an estimated $5000 in real estate marketing fees and agent’s commission of more than $18,000.

The trust could chalk it up as a capital loss, which it could then carry forward for tax purposes until it is recouped with a capital gain when the trust eventually sells another property.

Records show the entity also owns a townhouse in Coorparoo, bought for $620,000 in 2013, and a beachside investment villa in East Mackay, bought for $200,000 in 2012.

Ms Trad has an interest in five properties altogether, with five corresponding mortgages.

Real estate agent Simon Caulfield, a director of Place Kangaroo Point, suggested it would be more transparent for Ms Trad to sell the property at auction for the ­market price, and then donate any profits to a charity.

“There’s low stock, the market is healthy, and with everything happening with Cross River Rail, more than one person is going to want to buy it,” Mr Caulfield said.

Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington yesterday repeated calls for Ms Palaszczuk to sack Ms Trad from cabinet.