Anglicare WA advocates for safe and affordable housing.

In the lead up to the Federal Election, Anglicare WA advocates for safe and affordable housing. 

Scroll down to read about the most recent developments.  
 
Election housing announcements 

On Sunday 13 April, Labor and the Coalition launched their federal election campaigns with the announcement of major policies targeting housing affordability for first home buyers.  But what exactly are they promising and what could this mean for Australians? 

The Labor Promise: “A fair crack for young Australians” 

Under Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Labor will enable all first-home buyers to purchase a home with just a 5% deposit and not pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI).  LMI is a fee charged by the banks to cover the risk of default when a borrower’s deposit is less than 20% of the property’s value, but a re-elected Albanese Government will act as a guarantor for the loan so that the fee will be waived.  Labor has also pledged $10 billion to build 100,000 homes over eight years exclusively for first home buyers. 

The Coalition Promise: “Restoring the dream of home ownership” 

Led by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, an elected Dutton Coalition Government will enable first-home buyers to claim interest payments on their home loan as a tax deduction for the first five years of the loan.  However, this only applies to newly built homes on loans up to $650,000 and is available to individuals earning up $175,000 and joint applicants with a combined income of $250,000.  The plan, which the Coalition claims will boost construction activity and housing supply, is projected to cost $1.25 billion.    

The Reality 

Although smaller deposits, more new homes, and tax deductions sound promising for first home buyers, critics note that these duelling election promises are not well-targeted and fall short on bold reform.  Economists argue that they will drive up housing demand and in turn, housing prices, while housing experts note that they do little to fully address the root cause of the housing crisis: a lack of affordable housing supply.   

Focusing on demand instead of supply is a missed opportunity for both major parties, with no policies on display to address supply barriers such as labour shortages, increased cost of building materials, or lack of available land.  The lack of big structural reforms to tax incentives for property investors, such as negative gearing and Capital Gains Tax, also means more of the same.    

Furthermore, there has been little to no mention of renter protections, financial support, or related tax reform in this week's housing policy announcements for the one-third of Australians living in rental housing.   

The Solution 

Anglicare WA CEO Mark Glasson stated, “In terms of housing, there's three things we've got to do. We've got to look at the immediate crisis. We're not going to build the houses we need tomorrow, so we need to put things in place to protect people now, and that includes looking after renters, rental supports for people, and addressing income levels for the lowest paid people so they can afford to rent in the private market.”  

“Secondly, we've got to look at reforming the rental legislation.  And the third thing is that we're all in on building. We need more supply. We need different types of housing. We need different types of construction, but we've got to have more of it. And until we get that done, we're going to continue to be playing catch up.” 

The Asks 

That is why Anglicare WA is calling for more safe, secure, and affordable housing through the following solutions: 

• Reform property tax deductions and incentives to boost social and affordable housing 

• Set a social housing target of 6% of total housing stock, increase income eligibility and extend the grace period for exiting 

• Continue the National Rental Affordability Scheme beyond 2026 

• Harmonise rental laws across Australia to: 

End no-grounds evictions 

Introduce minimum standards for all rental housing including energy efficiency standards 

Establish rent price stabilisation or a capping system 

To learn more about Anglicare WA’s federal election priorities for affordable cost of living, please click here.