The price of allowing FHBs to access superannuation creates some real winners: existing landowners, banks and the handful of buyers able to buy before the land-price jaws inevitably snap shut again. Everyone else loses – now and in retirement.
BLOG: housing affordability
Australian property through foreign eyes
By Catherine Cashmore, a market analyst, journalist, and policy thinker, with extensive industry experience in all aspects relating to property. Follow Catherine on Twitter or via her Blog. I had the good fortune to meet two investors from Dallas Texas last week –...
People Power and Housing
By Catherine Cashmore, a market analyst, journalist, and policy thinker, with extensive industry experience in all aspects relating to property. Follow Catherine on Twitter or via her Blog. The protests that washed across major cities and towns a few days ago, covered...
The Senate Housing Affordability Inquiry: Prosper’s submission
Australia has blown a land bubble of immense size. This troubling reality has finally come to the attention of the Senate and obliged it to examine the matter. Prosper Australia's submission to the Senate Housing Affordability inquiry examines nine key economic...
ABC Radio, Apartment Gluts and Competitive Forces
This morning I was interviewed by ABC (radio) news regarding Planning Minister Matthew Guy's 'Super Tuesday'. The questions focused on "the largest number of private residential permits made on one day by the state government". Will they make a difference? I pointed...
Property Drip Feeding Slips Under the ACCC’s Radar
"We support ACCC’s drive to contest price gouging but express concern the ACCC focus on online sales is a mere detail compared to what is happening under our feet in the land game." Prosper Australia Project Director Karl Fitzgerald said today "The global property...
FIRE sector eats into productivity
A must read for those interested in Prof Michael Hudson's commentary on the growing influence of the FIRE sector in rent seeking activities, cross posted from Macrobusiness. By Leith van Onselen Business Spectator’s Rob Burgess made the following keen observation over...
Englobo IV: Land, Land, everywhere but not a place to sit
Victorian Planning Minister Matthew Guy has been out this week energetically pointing to fresh ‘land releases’ around Melbourne. Growth, or the illusion of growth, is a powerful sedative that buys contentment and political support. He will bang this drum hard. Plan...
Eslake in Senate submission on Housing Policy Failure
Saul Eslake has hit the press (p3 of the AFR - paywalled) with his submission to the Senate Committee on Housing Affordability. The submission is largely based on his 122nd Annual Henry George Commemorative dinner presentation. Saul again reiterates his key point from...
House prices, not wages, is the bigger issue
Letters, Australian Financial Review 15 January 2014 p33 Peter Pitt (“High wages force companies to consider offshore options”, AFR January 10) suggests that a lower minimum wage will improve employment retention in Australia. The lower wage countries he uses to...