We have the power to fix housing

Thousands of Australians need secure homes, and only our politicians stand in the way of straightforward solutions, writes Andrew Wilkie

AUSTRALIA is a rich and lucky country. We have the 13th biggest economy in the world and our per capita national wealth is second only to the Swiss.

So it beggars belief that so many Australians struggle to find an affordable home. Just look at the most recent Census figures where a staggering 116,427 people are homeless, including more than 1500 in Tasmania. In Denison, the figure is more than 500.

One of the problems is that rents have risen sharply. When you look at average local wages versus average local rents, we’re now the most unaffordable Australian capital city to rent a home. The Hobart CBD, Sandy Bay, West Hobart, South Hobart, North Hobart, Kingston, Margate and Sorell in particular are all ranked unaffordable in the latest Rental Affordability Index.

No wonder more than 3400 families are on the public housing waiting list in Tasmania and even priority applicants wait more than a year.

And when it comes to buying a house, Australia is second only to Hong Kong in unaffordability. In Hobart, just in the past 12 months, our market price has gone up by more than 13 per cent.

I’m not blaming any one government because it has been a failure of policy right across this country, at all levels of government, for years. However, just as they’ve caused this problem, it’s in the power of governments to fix it. For a start we need national and state housing strategies to guide the detailed development of holistic and effective solutions.

They must include much more investment in crisis accommodation because the people most in need of a roof over their head are those in crisis. People who, through no fault of their own, are sleeping in the bush, under bridges or in someone’s garage. We can afford to put a roof over their head. Remember we’re the second-richest people on the planet.

We need more public housing and other social housing. We can afford it, especially seeing as the State Government is profiting from the real estate boom with a $193 million conveyance duty windfall over the next four years.

We need more supported accommodation for people with specific needs. That’s the way to start addressing the mental health crisis in this country, and the lack of housing for other people with distinct needs.

Airbnb needs to return to its original purpose of making spare rooms available. I’m not antiAirbnb, but when you see a place like Hobart where so many longterm rentals are being turned into short-term holiday accommodation, you start to understand why there are not nearly enough long-term rentals available. The State Government’s so-called crackdown on short-stay accommodation is political theatre. It won’t do anything substantive to ease the pressure on affordability and accessibility because, quite simply, it’s nothing more than enforcing the current registration process for properties.

We need to do something about negative gearing and capital gains tax because of the way they so disproportionately favour investors over owner-occupiers. Yes, let’s “grandfather” changes to protect historic investment decisions. But let’s also take the politics out of it and start listening to the experts, most of whom advocate serious reform.

And what about a modest increase in Commonwealth rent assistance? Imagine what that would do for disadvantaged and low-income people. The Federal Budget this year is about half a trillion dollars, so if we can afford to double our submarine fleet and pay junior federal politicians more than $200,000 a year for doing bugger all, then why is it so hard to find $20 a week extra for people who most need it?

The Federal Government should waive Tasmania’s housing debt, like it did for South Australia. Remember half of the money that comes to Tasmania for public housing goes straight back to Canberra in interest payments of $15 million a year.

The Federal Government should put tighter restrictions on foreign investment. In the last two financial years international buyers bought more than $60 million of residential property in Hobart, and that’s an upward pressure on prices we don’t need.

What about rent-to-buy public housing, which used to be around Australia and is still offered overseas? Or light rail to Hobart’s northern suburbs to link housing to the city and jobs? And improved grants and access to low-interest loans for first home buyers?

In other words there’s no shortage of ways to address the housing affordability and accessibility challenges in a country as wealthy as ours. That we haven’t already, and indeed have barely started doing so, is a failure of governance of profound proportions. At least it’s a failure that can be remedied. We just need some half-decent politicians for a change.

If we can afford to double our submarine fleet and pay junior politicians $200,000 a year ... why is it so hard to find $20 a week for people who need it?