O’Neil bought the two-bedroom East Melbourne unit for $1 million in 2014 and sold it for $1.375 million in 2023, before her July 2024 appointment as Housing Minister.
Critics online accuse her of hypocrisy, pointing to the sale’s timing ahead of Labor’s 2026 budget changes that limit negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts for new investors—though existing properties like hers are unaffected.
She defends the reforms as steps to build 1.2 million homes by 2030 and help first-time buyers, amid a softening Melbourne market where the apartment’s value has dropped to around $987,000.
