Integrated property company LongView has opened the fund following a change to the rules that mean SMSFs are no longer able to borrow money for the purposes of buying a residential investment property, despite many funds relying on this route for two decades.
James Hooke, Executive Chair of LongView, said many trustees have wanted to break into the property market as part of their SMSF portfolio but had no way to do so on a smaller and more practical scale.
“The rule changes mean that trustees who want housing in their portfolio now need another way than directly investing in a single property,” Hooke said.
“Our Fund allows trustees to buy into a diverse portfolio of residential housing in the size they want rather than the size that is available, without the added tax, responsibility, or paperwork behind investment property ownership.”
LongView’s Home Equity Fund 2 co-invests into existing residential properties, meaning SMSF investors can invest into a slice of the residential property market without the commitment of purchasing an entire home outright, or the responsibilities of being a landlord.
“If you decide 10 per cent of the self-managed super fund should be in Australian residential property, there has never been a way to actually do that. Historically, you’ve had to commit to buying a whole house and risk that dominating your portfolio – with all of your residential property investment concentrated on a single investment – or you give up on the idea,” Hooke said.
The shared equity structure of Fund 2 has already proven to be successful in LongView’s first Home Equity Fund which launched in 2023 and closed oversubscribed. By 31 March 2026, Fund 1 had invested in more than 220 homes, worth about $300 million between them, and returned an average of 14.1% per year since it started.
Hooke attributed the Fund’s success to LongView’s investment approach, which largely relies on a rigorous property selection process that identifies the best properties with the highest chance of capital growth. The ideal property is known as a RODWELL – robust, older dwelling on well-located land.
Hooke said that buying a property outright may still suit some trustees but for everyone else, the answer isn’t to give up on housing.
“Housing is driven by lots of things and despite how volatile the market seems, investing into the right kind of properties, like RODWELLs, may allow your portfolio to outperform the average,” he said.
“The best solution is to own property in a more sensible portion and let someone else deal with the tenants.”
