State Budgets Making Small Adjustments to Address Housing Crisis

June 30, 2024 TruthUSA

The struggling effort to construct new homes is attributed to the heavy tax burden imposed by states on the housing sector.

Commentary

State budgets have come and gone, leaving housing markets relatively untouched.

This is alarming and detrimental. In Australia, housing affordability is currently at its lowest point in memory, posing a significant issue that demands political attention.

This crisis is leaving an entire generation without prospects of a secure financial future akin to that of their parents.

International property monitor Demographia recently released its 2023 report, ranking Australia as the second least affordable country after Hong Kong.

In 2023, they introduced a new category called “Impossibly Unaffordable,” where Australia’s eastern seaboard metropolises fell under.

This issue seems to be predominantly Antipodean, as New Zealand closely trailed Australia in rankings, outpacing other Anglosphere nations like the United States and the UK. Singapore was rated as the most affordable.

Several factors contribute to Australia’s high house prices, including significant immigration, Reserve Bank interest rate policies, and constraints in land, labor, and material supply.

While immigration and interest rates fall beyond state government control, there is a critical role they play in regulating land supply.

Despite minor mentions from some leaders like David Crisafulli, Queensland’s opposition leader, the housing crisis was largely overlooked in budget discussions. In fact, several budgetary measures may exacerbate the situation.