For the next 30 minutes,I tried to juggle my dual obligations. I quickly came to realise they were the aligned. In both places I was trying to understand what had gone wrong,and how we could get it right for our children.
The way things stand,there is little chance that my daughter or her friends will be able to afford their own home. Low homeownership correlates with increased wealth inequality,worse mental health,greater democratic instability,domestic violence and less economic productivity. So,it is a concern that,despite generous government assistance,homeownership for people under 40 is now lower than it was in 1947.
There are many stories in the media ofhouses selling $1 million above market. This is not a well-functioning market;it is a sign that buyers are desperate.
Why has the Australian housing market gone as wrong as the food tech assignment?
Here is a summary of the usual suspects:property speculators (however,the proportion of property investors has been at record lows),net migration (for the last 18 months net migration has been zero),interest rates and the tax system turning housing into a speculative asset.
Some of these are only a problem if you stop people from building more houses.
Think of it this way:government programs help 100 people to buy a bus ticket,but there are only 50 seats on the bus. At this point we have a choice,we can either get another bus,so everyone can get on,or we can tell half the people waiting to rack off because they don’t deserve a seat. Currently,councils and our planning system does just that.