Dan slammed for home ownership ‘furphy’

Daniel Andrews has been accused of undermining young people’s home ownership dreams to avoid tackling escalating housing affordability issues.

Stephanie Luciani is expanding her search area after being priced out of her preferred suburbs. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The property Council of Australia has slammed Premier Daniel Andrews for saying home ownership is not important to young people.

Mr Andrews this week claimed that owning a home was less important to younger people given the increasing cost of property in Victoria.

Danni Hunter, the Victorian executive director of the Property Council of Australia, said she was “disappointed” by the comments.

“What we need to see here in Victoria, rather than the hopes and dreams of Victorians being undermined by lack of government action, is seeing work around planning reform being reprioritised,” she said.

“We need political leadership on housing affordability. What we don’t need is the talking down of people’s very valid home ownership dreams.

“The great Australian dream of owning your own home is definitely alive and well but housing affordability is one of the biggest issues and challenges of our times.”

Property Council of Australia’s Victorian executive director Danni Hunter.

Ms Hunter said action on planning reform, a solid program of dedicated new housing supply and a constructive relationship between government and the property industry is key to addressing the crisis.

“Without a solid stream of affordable housing, we’re cheating Victorians out of their home ownership dreams,” she added.

Mr Andrews later doubled down on the comments to detail the importance of rent protections, acknowledging that some young people preferred to rent because housing affordability was a challenge.

“I’m not here to speak on behalf of all young people, I have never done that, nor would I, that’s the kind of disrespectful politics that I’m not interested in,” he said

“I’ve listened to young people and some of them have said to me, ‘we will choose to rent if you give us a secure lease where we want to live, as opposed to going a long way away … to go and buy.”

Sustainable Australia MP Clifford Hayes also slammed the comments, stating the “Premier’s kids and their friends is a woeful sample size to use as evidence”.

“It’s distressing that this ‘evidence’ is potentially steering policy objectives in our state,” he said.

“Simply making up the furphy that young people don’t want to own their own home is a very convenient way to avoid the issue and do nothing about it.”

It comes as exclusive new data commissioned by the Housing Industry Australia to gauge public sentiment regarding housing affordability and supply found 70 per cent of respondents believed home ownership felt more difficult than 10 years ago.

Stephanie Luciani, who is looking to buy a house with her partner, says the Premier’s comments were ‘not reflective of everyone’. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Almost 60 per cent expected struggles would remain for another decade. The median housing price in Melbourne is currently averaging about $1.1m.

Almost 70 per cent believed governments had a role in helping Australians become homeowners.

The federal government ranked the worst when it came to helping fix the issues.

HIA Victorian executive director Fiona Nield said the research “clearly shows” that young people remained aspirational about home ownership and the benefits it brings.

“Much of this sentiment comes from renters who are feeling the strain now as rents increase,” she said.

“Interestingly renters from 18-35 (years old) remain optimistic about their chances to own a home later in life and have by no means given up on the dream.”

Meanwhile a new report, which followed a seven-month parliamentary inquiry into housing across the country, called for reform on broken planning systems, a fix on inefficient regulation and an end to new home buyers “unfairly bearing the brunt” of taxes and charges.

Committee chair Jason Falinski said: “It should not need to be stated, but home ownership matters. It matters for reasons as diverse as wealth equality, mental health, childhood outcomes and democratic stability.”

Premier’s comments ‘not relative to everyone’

Stephanie Luciani, 24, is renting in Doncaster with her partner while they search for their first home and disagrees property ownership is becoming less important to the younger generation.

“It’s not really relative to everyone,” she said of the premier’s comments.

“I’m really business focused and am trying to save as much money as I can.”

Ms Luciani, an assistant insurance broker and entrepreneur, is just one of many young Australians struggling to break into the property market.

She’s looking to buy further out from the city as house prices continue to hike.

“Even Doncaster is too expensive,” Ms Luciani said.

“We’re looking around Box Hill North, Forest Hill and Burwood. Not too far, but more affordable.”

They’re looking within the $800,000 to $1.2m price range, and hoping to find an older property they can live in for a couple of years before renovating or rebuilding.

– Emily Holgate