20 August 2026

Recently trending

Does your will qualify for the discretionary testamentary trust exemption?Are you making these SMSF mistakes?Lithium's latest drop and what it means for ASX investors Retirement spending is not one-size-fits-all Why have Australian living standards 'fallen' and how do we fix it?

Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."

Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."

Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"

Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."

Reader: "I can quickly sort the items that I am interested in, then research them more fully. It is also a regular reminder that I need to do this."

Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."

Eleanor Dartnall, AFA Adviser of the Year, 2014: "Our clients love your newsletter. Your articles are avidly read by advisers and they learn a great deal."

Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."

Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"

Professor Robert Deutsch: "This has got to be the best set of articles on economic and financial matters. Always something worthwhile reading in Firstlinks. Thankyou"

Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."

John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."

Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"

Scott Pape, author of The Barefoot Investor: "I'm an avid reader of Cuffelinks. Thanks for the wonderful resource you have here, it really is first class."

Reader: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"

Reader: "Love it, just keep doing what you are doing. It is the right length too, any longer and it might become a bit overwhelming."

Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."

Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."

Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."

John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."

Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."

Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."

David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"

Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."

Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."

Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"

Steve: "The best that comes into our world each week. This is the only one that is never, ever canned before fully being reviewed by yours truly."

Home / Author: Adrian Harrington

Adrian Harrington

The economy, bond yields and real estate: where to from here?

The gap between property yields and bond yields is known as the ‘risk premium’, the excess yield from investment in commercial property. The high yield spread signals limited downside to commercial property values.

Adrian Harrington
28 April 2021
2

Offices will live on in a post-COVID world

The concept of 'activity-based working', where several people occupy one seat on a particular day, is gone. Businesses will need more space for the same number of people as an offset to the decline in demand.

Adrian Harrington
18 November 2020
2

Not all non-residential real estate performs the same

Retail assets, particularly those focused on discretionary shopping, will continue to underperform and industrial and logistics assets will be the winners for the foreseeable future.

Adrian Harrington
20 May 2020
3

Strong capital flows support non-residential real estate

In this 'lower for longer' rate environment, investors are recalibrating expectations of the required return from high-quality real estate, and foreigners are targetting Australia.

Adrian Harrington
12 February 2020
1

Sale and leasebacks benefit both companies and investors

Property funds are finding new assets in companies making better capital management decisions by selling their properties and leasing them back. It also gives investors strong long-term returns.

Adrian Harrington
18 December 2019
1

Long lease property funds: follow the income

Investors should not assume all property leases are the same, and long WALE funds have the advantages of tenant quality and term, plus look for the highly-desirable 'triple net leases'.

Adrian Harrington
9 October 2019
5

Firstlinks is sponsored by:

Latest Updates

Planning

Testamentary trusts have secured the CGT exemption

Treasury’s latest CGT reform draft delivers a win for testamentary trusts and deceased estates, exempting estate-derived gains from the 30% floor. However, questions on death and divorce rollovers remain unresolved.

Rachael Rofe
19 August 2026

Superannuation

How much super should you have?

Average super balances are one of the most misleading benchmarks. They ignore your goals, spending and future needs, creating a false sense of security. Here is how I calculate exactly where I need to be at every decade.

Shani Jayamanne
19 August 2026

Retirement

Retiring from work is easy, retiring into life is harder

Most people spend decades planning how to retire. Far fewer plan for what comes next. The biggest retirement challenge isn't always financial, and it often catches even the most prepared retirees completely off guard.

Retirement Researcher
19 August 2026

Right asset class, wrong index: the trap in Australian small caps

Most Australian portfolios are concentrated in large caps, with relatively little exposure to smaller companies. But what if the biggest risk isn't the economy, interest rates or valuations? For many, the risk is hidden in plain sight.

Russel Chesler
19 August 2026

Property

Are these assets the missing piece in Australian portfolios?

Many investors remain concentrated in shares, cash and property. Despite their popularity among institutional investors, real assets remain underrepresented in many SMSF portfolios. Could they be the missing piece?

Nick Kelly
19 August 2026

Investment strategies

The biggest risk that buy-and-hold investors ignore

Investors spend decades learning how to stay invested, yet few have a plan for getting out. When a financial goal has a hard deadline, a worked example shows why a fixed derisking schedule should outrank buy-and-hold discipline.

Trevor Schmid
19 August 2026

Investment strategies

How passive investing is driving the decline of active fund alpha

Why have active managers struggled as passive investing has surged? Research suggests that flows into index funds and ETFs are creating structural headwinds, penalising the stock-picking strategies that once generated alpha.

Larry Swedroe
19 August 2026

Register here to receive the Firstlinks newsletter for free

Alliances

Site Map

About Firstlinks

Disclaimer
The data, research and opinions provided here are for information purposes; are not an offer to buy or sell a security; and are not warranted to be correct, complete or accurate. Morningstar, its affiliates, and third-party content providers are not responsible for any investment decisions, damages or losses resulting from, or related to, the data and analyses or their use. To the extent any content is general advice, it has been prepared for clients of Morningstar Australasia Pty Ltd (ABN: 95 090 665 544, AFSL: 240892), without reference to your financial objectives, situation or needs. For more information refer to our Financial Services Guide. You should consider the advice in light of these matters and if applicable, the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before making any decision to invest. Past performance does not necessarily indicate a financial product’s future performance. To obtain advice tailored to your situation, contact a professional financial adviser. Articles are current as at date of publication.
This website contains information and opinions provided by third parties. Inclusion of this information does not necessarily represent Morningstar’s positions, strategies or opinions and should not be considered an endorsement by Morningstar.