Australia’s Housing Crisis: Broken Policies, Political Hypocrisy

Young Australians, renters, single parents, and low-income workers across the country right now are facing the challenge of housing afforability. It’s a crisis that’s affects the hip pocket, mental health and inequality. And it’s robbing a whole generation of stability and security.

But here’s the uncomfortable truth: this crisis didn’t happen by accident. It’s the direct result of deliberate political choices. And despite their election commitments, neither Labor nor the Liberals are genuinely willing to fix the system they’ve benefiting from.

Australia’s housing market has been turned into a high-stakes game of Monopoly. Prices are up. Rents are up. Vacancy rates are down. And the major parties are doing nothing to fix the underlying problem. In fact, their election commitments will make it worse.

At first glance, Labor’s plan to help first-home buyers with government-backing to get bigger loans and put down smaller deposits might sound helpful. And the Liberals promise of tax breaks for mortgage interest might sound good on the surface. But in practice?

Well the problem is they’re both planning to pour more fuel on the fire. They’re proposing demand-side subsidies that will boost demand in an already overheated market. Their policies won’t fix affordability - they will just encourage young people to take on more debt to chase prices that keep climbing. It’s like giving everyone a ladder in a stampede: you’re still in the same crowd, you’re just climbing over each other.

The Real Problem: Tax Rorts Driving Inequality

While politicians argue over who can help people buy their first home faster, they’re ignoring the elephant in the room: negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount.

These two tax policies give property market wheelers and dealers massive advantages over people just trying to build or buy their own home. Negative gearing lets people who buy and sell properties deduct rental losses from their income tax. And the capital gains tax discount lets them pay just half the tax when they sell for a profit. These incentives inflate prices, reward speculation, and make it harder for everyday Australians to compete.

So why won’t either side commit to serious reform? Well one reason is that many of the politicians themselves are cashing in. Peter Dutton has made $30 million worth of property market transactions. Over the last 30 years, he’s bought and sold at over 20 properties and made millions from the very housing market his party refuses to reform. And now, instead of calling for bold changes, he’s offering policies that keep the game rigged in favour of investors like him.

That’s not leadership. That’s self-interest.

It’s galling to watch politicians who’ve gotten rich off property tell young Australians to “just work harder,” or to be grateful for a scheme that helps them take on more debt. What we need isn’t more help climbing into a broken system. What we need is to change the system.

What Real Solutions Look Like

• Phase out negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts for wheelers and dealers who already own multiple properties.

• Invest in public and genuinely affordable housing - not just for-profit developments.

• Treat housing as a human right, not an asset class and buck-making scheme.

None of that will be easy. But for a rich country like Australia, it’s not impossible either. It’s about political courage and integrity rather than self interest.

Right now, both major parties are offering slogans and schemes, not structural reform. They’re helping young people go deeper into debt instead of challenging tax settings and profit motives that are locking so many out. It’s time to call out the hypocrisy and demand policies that serve people, not property portfolios.