Positively Geared by Lloyd Edge: An Honest Review

📖 What is Positively Geared about?🔗

This is the book that made Lloyd Edge a recognisable name in Australian property circles. Edge spent years as a high school music teacher before building a multi-million-dollar portfolio and founding the buyers' agency Aus Property Professionals. The central argument is simple: stop chasing tax deductions through negative gearing and start buying properties that generate income from day one. A property is positively geared when the rental income exceeds the mortgage repayments and holding costs. Most Australian investors have historically done the opposite, accepting a cash shortfall in the hope of capital growth and a tax break.

Edge's framework covers a lot of ground:

• Positive cash flow from day one: finding properties where rent covers costs, rather than subsidising the shortfall from your salary.
• Manufacturing equity: using renovation, subdivision and small development to create value rather than waiting for the market.
• Dual-occupancy and granny flats: adding a second dwelling to lift rental yield.
• Rentvesting: renting where you want to live while owning investment properties in more affordable markets.
• Borrowing-capacity management: structuring purchases so each property strengthens rather than kills your ability to buy the next one.
• Building toward passive income: a portfolio that pays you, not one that costs you every month.

It's part memoir, part how-to. Edge shares his own story throughout, which makes the strategies feel grounded rather than theoretical. Whether you find that inspiring or a bit much depends on your tolerance for the genre.

⚖️ Strengths and weaknesses🔗

👤 Who should read it, and who should skip it?🔗

🔍 What do critics say?🔗

Most media coverage of Lloyd Edge is promotional or interview-format rather than independent critical review, and the updated-edition launch was framed as a complete overhaul for the current market, which is accurate given the content changes. The book is published by Wiley, a credible mainstream publisher, which adds an editorial layer of credibility some property books in this space lack. There aren't major independent critical reviews from Australian finance media, partly because the property-book genre is niche here and partly because the book sits in a promotional ecosystem that doesn't invite much pushback. Take that for what it is.

💬 What do readers say? Goodreads and Reddit🔗

On Goodreads it holds around 3.7 out of 5 from a few hundred ratings, with most readers landing in the three-to-four-star range, suggesting most found it useful but not exceptional. On r/AusFinance the sentiment is mixed: some describe it as a worthwhile read for Australian property context, particularly for those wanting a local framework.

🇦🇺 The Australian angle🔗

This is where the book earns its keep. Positive versus negative gearing is a genuinely important distinction in the Australian context that most mainstream personal finance content glosses over. Negative gearing means your rental expenses (including mortgage interest) exceed your rental income, producing a loss you can offset against other income for tax. Positive gearing flips that: the property generates more income than it costs to hold, so it's cash-flow positive from the start. Edge argues the positive approach is more sustainable for building a large portfolio, because each property adds to your cash flow rather than draining it, preserving your borrowing capacity for the next purchase.

The tension is real: high-growth cities tend to have low rental yields, making positive gearing hard to achieve, while regional areas offer better yields but potentially lower growth. Edge's answer is to manufacture equity through renovation and development, a reasonable response that nonetheless needs skills, time and capital. A few things to weigh independently: leverage amplifies both gains and losses (a 10% fall on a highly geared portfolio is a much bigger problem than it looks); positive-gearing calculations can flip to negative quickly if rates rise, as many investors discovered from 2022 onward; and location risk is real. For a broader, framework-first property read, our Armchair Guide to Property Investing review is a good companion, and the positive-cash-flow philosophy also runs through our Money Magnet review.

💰 The verdict🔗

Positively Geared is a practical, Australian-specific guide to cash-flow-focused property investing, genuinely useful for intermediate investors who want a framework built on positive cash flow rather than negative gearing. The self-promotion is noticeable and worth keeping in mind: this is a practitioner's guide with a clear point of view and a commercial interest in the strategies it recommends, so read it critically and verify everything against your own situation and independent advice. For complete beginners there are better starting points; for investors comfortable with the basics who want to think differently about cash flow, yield and portfolio structure, it's worth the read, and the updated edition makes it more relevant for current conditions. Property investing carries real risk, and leverage amplifies both gains and losses, so always seek independent financial advice before acting. Our rating: 3.5 out of 5.

❓ Frequently asked questions🔗