Coffs Coast’s haves and have-nots in the great real estate race

If Coffs Harbour was a Monopoly game you’d love three houses at Diggers Beach and a hotel at The Jetty. But the real-life story is one of incidental winners and desperate people locked out. How the people chasing your vote would tackle the challenge.

It’s the conversation at every backyard barbecue on the Coffs Coast - ‘have you seen what they’re asking for the place down the road?’.

House and unit prices have gone through the pun-intended roof - and the tearaway increases have created a Mid-North Coast micro-world of the haves and the have-nots.

Those who own their own home, or at least a stake in it complete with a mortgage, have seen their ‘paper worth’ rise exponentially.

Those who don’t, and were looking to gain a foothold in the market, have been all but frozen out by the high cost of finding a deposit for their first home.

For a third tier - tenants - the situation is every bit as dire, as the cost of renting has also skyrocketed.

Add a shortage of places to rent, from Macksville to Woolgoolga, and demand outstripping new builds ... and it’s a perfect storm.

Housing is unquestionably one of the big issues heading into the federal election - though the issue is also the province for state and local government.

In the first of a special series on the issues that matter in the seat of Cowper, we asked Emma Belcher who sees the challenges every day in her role to put a question to the candidates chasing your vote.

Emma Belcher, vice-chairperson, Housing Matters Action Group

Emma Belcher.

Q: Given that home ownership is well out of reach for many first home buyers and local workers, private rentals are increasingly expensive, insecure and competitive, and that social housing has long waitlists, what do you see as viable solutions to ensure that everyone can have a home?

Pat Conaghan, The Nationals

Pat Conaghan: “I believe I have already proven that I am willing to go to bat for housing in our region, like the recent Bellingen and Kempsey examples, particularly for the more vulnerable in our community.”

It became very clear during the pandemic the conflicting roles of the federal and state governments, and states are very protective of their domain. Due to the federated model, it is very difficult for the federal government to dictate to states and territories how they allocate available federal funding.

I strongly believe that at all levels of government we need to cut the red and green tape and allow land releases and rezoning to occur to facilitate supply and take pressure off the housing market.

I agree with the recommendations laid out in the recent Tax and Revenue Committee’s report on housing that the federal government should provide incentive payments to state and local governments to encourage the adoption of better planning and property administration policies.

The recommendations also stated that the Australian Government provides substantial grants to state and local governments on an unconditional basis. These payments would be linked to outcomes that result in better and more available housing that will in turn see an uplift in home ownership.

Additionally, we do need schemes to facilitate private sector partnerships to deliver discount-to-market rent-to-own. I see private entities working hand-in-hand with government to ensure the quickest and most effective outcomes.

I am already working with local and state governments and in fact am aware of a number of projects that will see the release of large council and private land holdings across the electorate, even as recently as last week in Bellingen.

I believe I have already proven that I am willing to go to bat for housing in our region, like the recent Bellingen and Kempsey examples, particularly for the more vulnerable in our community.

Caz Heise, independent

Caz Heise: “We need an expansion of public housing across Cowper and measures to guarantee rental tenure and security, including higher levels of rental assistance.

Housing has become a key component of wealth creation in Australia and is now playing a big role in rising inequality across our communities.

Home prices and rents are outstripping wage growth, and so even people with well paid permanent work are facing housing insecurity, especially in regional areas which have seen an influx of Covid refugees from the cities.

We need a national housing strategy informed by a thorough and independent review of the impact of government policies, and the influence of donors, on the unsustainable rate of increase in home prices and rents, so legislation and decision making can be based on fact, fairness and merit.

We need to explore government investment in property ‘rent to buy’ schemes so first home buyers and lower income families can get a toehold in the property market.

We need an expansion of public housing across Cowper and measures to guarantee rental tenure and security, including higher levels of rental assistance.

We need to investigate requirements for property developers to set aside a percentage of their developments for social housing; the need for property investors to pay larger deposits and limits to the level of tax deductions available to property investors and particularly those focused on short term holiday rental accommodation.

Far too many young people and women are living rough so we need more government investment in crisis accommodation as well as measures which protect women and their children from being evicted and made homeless following family breakdown or domestic violence.

Timothy Nott, Greens

Timothy Nott: “We will build a million extra homes before 2030.Most will be rented out at 25 per cent of income. While aspirational, we need to try.”

Current policy settings encourage house price growth through increasing demand, particularly the supply of credit. I do not support this.

There has been little innovation in the supply approval process with the system allowing simple planning principles to be ignored.

The NSW state government has decreased the land owned for public housing. Public transport and varied transport options have been left out of rezoning and are now difficult to introduce.

Residential zones are being approved today in areas that flood, putting lives at risk.

Ecosystem services from nature are destroyed with no replacement. Our jobs put at risk and the houses being built are for profit not people.

I plan to bring in overarching federal rules to change this illogical short term decision making if the states don’t.

We need to ban all new residential approvals on lands that flood.

With $180 billion given to banks at 0.1 per cent, home builder and other schemes, there was a clear path forward - house prices would rise faster than incomes and the cost of living would rise.

This is now further increased with larger first home buyers grants.

An inquiry into housing supply was called with no real outcome but more wasted tax payers’ money. The National party supported this.

Thankfully, the Greens have a plan. We will build a million extra homes before 2030.

Most will be rented out at 25 per cent of income. While aspirational, we need to try.

Let’s make TAFE and university free and bring construction training to Cowper. We need to build our economy and increase wages in line with inflation focusing on the renewable revolution.

Other options are pausing overseas buying, decreasing the money laundering (over one million homes are empty in Australia) and increasing higher density rezoning.

I will look into the long term planning of sister cities and new growth areas that are climate resilient while protecting valuable agricultural land. A bright future awaits.

* The other four candidates for Cowper were invited to participate.