Waleed Aly: ‘It’s time we shut this party down’

WALEED Aly has dived into the debate over negative gearing in no uncertain terms, saying it’s “time to shut this party down”.

WALEED Aly has said while Labor leader Bill Shorten might seem like a “party pooper” trying to cut back on access to negative gearing it’s high time the tax break was shut down.

On Wednesday’s The Project, co-host Aly dived into negative gearing, the housing issue dividing the parties which is set to become an election decider.

By taking advantage of negative gearing, people with an investment property — where the cost of owning and managing the property is more than the income from it in say rent — can offset their losses.

So, basically, if your property costs you more than it makes you can claim a tax deduction.

Labor has said the current system is a “rort” benefiting rich property owners at the expense of people on low incomes. They’ve said they will limit negative gearing to only new properties to bring more houses into the market.

But Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said Labor’s “reckless” changes would reduce property values.

On Wednesday, Aly said home ownership was harder than it has ever been.

“Right now, the cost of the average house is roughly 4.3 times household income which is amazing when you consider so many more houses have two incomes.

“So good luck if you’re single.”

He cited research that suggested negative gearing had partly been responsible for making houses increasingly unaffordable for first time buyers. Shorten’s plans to limit negative gearing were a hard sell, when many investors had grown rich on rising house prices, but something had to give.

“Bill Shorten is the equivalent of the complaining neighbour who calls the cops and says the music’s too loud, he’s poking his head over the fence and going the party has to stop because he prefers Neil Diamond,” Aly said in a peice written with show producer Tom Whitty.

“He’s saying things have got out of control and he’s trying to sell us a conservative message (about) moderation and tax reform and really boring things like that which is a problem because if Bill Shorten was my local car salesman I’d probably buy a boat and that’s a big call because brown people on boats aren’t particularly liked in this country.”

Waleed Aly was pitch perfect with this Negative Gearing rant. We all know it! https://t.co/5i4jkRymmq

— Darren Robertson (@ozisobe) April 27, 2016

Waleed Aly unloading on #negativegearing. Another person who prob lives beyond their means + racked up debt, yet cries houses unaffordable?

— Nicholas Ng (@NickNg_DPR) April 27, 2016

my crush on Waleed Aly is out of control

— go cry about it (@FuturisticKish) April 27, 2016

Negative gearing was benefiting one section of Australian society at the expense of others. Aly cited as an example the backlash Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull received when he posed with Sydney suburban couple Julian and Kim Mignacca on Sunday who had taken advantage of negative gearing.

All was going well until the Prime Minister noted that the family had bought the property “in order to buy a place for his little daughter Addison who we just met who is nearly one”.

The concept of a one-year-old owning property while many other Australians struggle to buy their first home has focused attention on how unfair the housing market is.

This one-year old is on the property ladder earlier than you. Picture: AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

“Bill’s saying shut the party down and we all know that no real Aussie likes a party pooper, that is until you realise unless you’re a baby boomer or an actual baby you’re not invited to this party,” he said.

Investors might have had a good time with tax break but the good times had to come to an end because others were missing out.

“For the last 17 years investors have been partying like it’s 1999 but it’s time we shut this party down.”