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The missing element in current debates about Australian housing policy is consideration of the social democratic case for building a genuine mixed economy in the housing system respecting the different purposes of the sectors involved – public, private and household. Given the demand and supply problems currently making effective housing access very difficult, the case for much more direct public intervention and investment in the Australian housing system is strong.  

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Channelling institutional finance into affordable rental housing has long been a ‘holy grail’ urban policy aspiration. Recent developments suggest that this may be edging towards reality.   (more…)

Competition between first home buyers and investors is dominating the discussion about housing affordability, but it’s what’s happening a few rungs down the property ladder that is perhaps the greatest cause for concern – the challenges for people trying to rent in major cities and low-income earners waiting for social housing.

Paradoxically, greater institutional investment could be key to easing their housing stress. (more…)

Having a roof over one’s head, a place to call home, is a fundamental right for every individual. Until all levels of government collaborate with institutional investors and the not-for-profit sector to provide more affordable housing and accessible services, housing stress and homelessness will remain a blight on Australian society.   (more…)

The discussion and commentary about housing affordability in Australia has reached a crescendo in recent months. But an important piece of the housing puzzle cannot be overlooked in the debate: the role of social housing.

It is time for governments across the country to recognise that a well-functioning social housing sector is critical to balancing the housing market’s equilibrium. It cannot be pushed aside for more populist political topics.   (more…)

Treasurer Scott Morrison is right in saying that “there are no single or easy solutions” – even though he (and others on his side of politics) tend to ignore this advice in emphasising ‘supply-side solutions’ and decrying any suggestion of policy measures which are intended to dampen demand, especially from investors.   (more…)

The narrative provided by the property industry and by some politicians is that the planning system creates large bottlenecks to more supply. Yet the reality is that we have been generating record levels of supply in Australia in recent years. While supply is undoubtedly important, it is not the key moderator of price that it is in some other markets.   (more…)

Understanding how unaffordable housing affects renters is increasingly important, since more Australians can expect to rent for longer. How do negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount affect affordability, amenity and security for renters? Encouraging “mums and dads” to invest in the private rental market is not all it’s cracked up to be, and tenants’ advocates have been calling for reform.  (more…)

Many well-intentioned solutions have been proposed to address Australia’s housing affordability problem, yet fail to gain traction because the challenges faced by key stakeholder groups aren’t being addressed simultaneously. We believe success on a material scale will be more likely when this occurs.

We propose a model that potentially meets the needs of government, capital markets, and community housing providers in a simultaneous fashion, via the intermediation of a nationally owned, centralised property clearing house.  (more…)

Forever expanding supply on the urban fringe is unlikely to provide a solution to retreating affordability of home ownership. Housing needs to be expanded in those places where good jobs, services and infrastructure are.

The inner and middle suburbs – where the good jobs and opportunities are – represent the major battle ground for NIMBY-ism.   (more…)

Housing affordability includes a grab-bag of concerns: less money to spend on goods and services other than housing; falling home ownership rates; worsening access to jobs; increasing wealth inequality between and among generations; and increasing risks of a housing-led economic downturn.

Responding to these concerns requires careful analysis of the underlying drivers and of the potential impact of policy changes.  (more…)

Governments have raised expectations among voters anxious to see action on housing. There is no shortage of proposed policy solutions. But how do we sort the good from the bad? Many policy ideas sound good, but won’t do much in practice. Some will make housing affordability worse, drag on economic growth, or subtract from budget balances that are already in trouble. There are reforms that would make a big difference, but none is politically easy. If governments want to be seen as serious on housing affordability, they’re going to have to make some tough choices.   (more…)

The housing affordability debate is being wrongly understood as just a supply problem. The real cause of house price inflation is excess liquidity and debt, combined with overly generous tax incentives.   (more…)