OUR ECONOMIC SITUATION IS NO CHRISTMAS GIFT

WHAT a disgraceful and irresponsible column by Terry McCrann “Christmas gifts from Mr Trump” (Sunday Herald Sun, 22/12).

Comments like “added trillions of dollars to the wealth of Americans and hundreds of billions of dollars to that of Australians”. Worse, “spread that (increase in values) across all properties in Melbourne and Sydney and that has added trillions of dollars to household wealth”.

“Added wealth”, but not one word about how much those increases have been brought about by debt. Unprecedented debt from unprecedented low interest rates, that has condemned those debtors probably to a lifetime of extreme repayments.

And that’s apart from condemning first-homebuyers, either to family-destroying massive mortgages or to being renters for life. ‘Homes’ are now a commodity, with, unique to Australia, incredible taxation incentives for investors and doing the complete opposite to what those incentives were meant to provide. Instead of increasing the supply of rental properties, it is now increasing the demand for those properties from both investors and potential renters.

And with the cost of buying that rental property escalating, so too are the rents being demanded, putting great stress not only on the borrower, but, particularly, those seeking to rent accommodation. It’s a shocking vicious circle.

Terry McCrann, assets purchased with unaffordable debt is no Christmas gift. Anything like a repeat of this year will most certainly not be, as you say, a happy outcome — in fact, it will be the absolute opposite.

Ed Dimech, Torquay