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Housing affordability

This Month

The nation’s preliminary clearance rate was 70.1 per cent, Cotality research revealed.

Melbourne and Sydney auction markets heat up

The Victorian capital has recorded its seventh week in a row of its preliminary clearance rate holding above 70 per cent.

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High-rise switch sends apartment prices flying in these suburbs

Unit price growth has outpaced that of houses in close to two-thirds of suburban markets, due in part to the changing preferences of younger buyers.

Mortgage brokers have been increasingly successful in a competitive market, as the number of applications falls on higher interest rates.

NIMBYism and construction costs are why you can’t own a home

The enabling of new planned cities and exurbs with greater density and outstanding amenities may be the best of the worst alternatives.

New ABS data reveals overall dwelling approvals have dropped 5.7% in April. Under this government, housing construction is getting worse, not better.

Three reasons why Labor’s housing policy won’t revive the Australian dream

Labor faces two key tests: Can it build new houses? And can it facilitate more Australians to become first-home owners?

The Coalition must be relentless in holding the government to account for and offer an alternative plan for making Australia grow again.

3 ways the Coalition can fight back and restore Australia’s prosperity

The opposition should focus on solving three of the country’s biggest problems: housing, energy and tax.

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May

Policies in place are good, but more change is needed to boost housing supply: Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz.

The 262,000-home shortage Australia needs to fix

Lower interest rates and stable costs have improved the housing outlook, but reforms are needed to fix the undersupply.

RBA Governor Michele Bullock.

RBA cash rate cut could boost housing supply

The interest rate cut could prompt buyers to purchase off the plan, industry analysts suggest.

History suggests that once rates start falling, property prices don’t wait around. BOQ chief economist Peter Munckton says a 10 to 15 per cent price rise is coming.

Australia on verge of house price boom: economist

History suggests that once the RBA starts cutting, property fever hits quickly. One prominent expert says a 10 to 15 per cent price rise is coming.

Allegra Spender and Zali Steggall warn Labor can’t ease off on reform despite majority.

Daniel in doubt as teals warn Labor’s surge should not make it cocky

Independents, who could make further gains, warn the government could face a backlash if it lets this victory go to its head.

April

Jim Chalmers and Katy Gallagher say the government’s election promises will improve the budget by $1 billion over four years.

Labor’s missing $8b for housing makes a mockery of budget

More than 80 per cent of the $10 billion that the government committed to build 100,000 homes for first buyers was nowhere to be seen in its election costings.

As former Liberal federal treasurer Peter Costello points out, the weak rule to reduce gross debt as a share of the economy should not be difficult to achieve.

Election promises will leave young Australians bitter

Future generations will bear the brunt of the major parties wagering the nation’s future for instant political dividends.

The national prosperity we have enjoyed for many decades is in large part the result of previous policy reform such as the liberalisation of the economy and introduction of superannuation under the Hawke-Keating government.

Our biggest national test since World War II is here and we’re blowing it

We need leaders with the capacity and mindset to articulate a compelling vision for our future and the courage to execute on that vision.

Numerous inquiries, reviews and academic studies have attempted to explain Australia’s decline in housing affordability.

Why working hard no longer buys you a home in Australia

We need to end the federalism disconnect and enable states to strip away their own government-imposed costs on new housing.

Both super for housing and the government guarantee boost demand, putting upward pressure on housing costs.

The $5b move that could smash house prices

The housing policy promises from the major parties both offer assistance for housing supply, but they also boost demand in ways that are not well-targeted.

The short-term fixes on housing from both major parties are a band-aid on a broken system

The housing crisis isn’t about buyers, it’s about broken supply

Without serious reforms, we risk cementing a future where younger Australians are trapped in a cycle of inflated prices and growing debt.

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The major parties have unveiled policies they say will fix the housing crisis. But will they?

4 policy ideas to fix housing affordability

Fixing Australia’s decade-long housing crisis won’t happen overnight. It requires a sustained effort that cuts across political cycles.

Coalition v Labor: what’s on the table for housing

The first major policy battle of the election campaign erupted on Sunday. Here are the key points.

After the lost two decades and a half in Canberra, both major parties are bogged down in the “politics of incrementalism”.

Policy ping-pong won’t deliver housing affordability

A future government will inherit a dog’s breakfast of housing and tax policies and be left to clean up the mess.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks with resident Lucie Brown and her daughter Sofia at the opening of a social and affordable housing development on Addison road in Marrickville, Sydney.

Gen Z aren’t voting left or right, they want to smash the system

Young constituents are not primarily animated by “wokeism” or culture wars. Their grievances are material – housing, jobs, and living standards.

March

We have restrictive zoning laws that, combined with our national preference for detached housing, have led to low housing density in major capital cities.

Productivity problem empowers populist right

We had better get our act together in Australia or we may court the kind of poisonous politics wreaking havoc in the United States and across Europe.

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