Housing Crisis and A Difference to a Difference of Opinion

Last night the ABC program ‘A Difference of Opinion’ looked at the issues of the housing affordability ciris. The panel provided some quality perspectives as to what was causing the challenge and what kind of actions might need to occur in order to address the issue with Ross Gittins’ early observation that the debate completely ignored one of the most significant affected groups, ‘the renters’ as worth the admission price to the debate. And I was left wondering if the assorted suggestions were failing to address a more basic question – ‘why exactly do Australian’s believe that owning their own home is so important?’ It is a question that Sohail Inayatullah’s Causal Layererd Analaysis might provide insight to as the ‘mythology of home ownership’ is placed under the spotlight. A recent Hudson Institute report showed that over the past 30 years in Australia, the capital growth of the average home worth $100,000 in 1970 was about 6.5% per annum. Not much above bank interest on a $100k cash investment. The issue of housing afforability requires more assessment by the futures community. If not, the economists, social advocates and builders might end up debating the wrong issue