We need a massive reset on housing in this country. Housing has become an investment but it should firstly be a human right. 

It’s not enough to only look at supply.  I am calling for a new national housing accord that looks at every mechanism available, including tax reform, for a staged approach towards affordable housing. 

This is an everything-on-the-table approach.  It needs to include:

• a wider range of housing options: family-sized apartments like in Europe, the capability to downsize within the same suburb, cooperative and intergenerational housing 
• consideration for domestic violence support, homelessness, and other vulnerabilities
• call for a Federal Housing Coordinator-General to integrate a coordinated approach to both private and social housing
• mechanisms for bringing the cost of construction down; prices have soared since covid
• the chronic shortage of workers across 12 construction trades; we need increased training and apprenticeships, as well as targeted migration
• more efficient and sustainable forms of construction, including pre-assembly and modular 
• ensure Commonwealth Rent Assistance keeps pace with costs
• monitor the Housing Australia Future Fund targets and advocate that 10 per cent of homes are built under the scheme as social or affordable housing
• all the tax levers.   

This new accord would need to balance all of these considerations and plan for the changes needed carefully over time to respect people’s investments and the different needs across generations.

Inaction is also a decision and young and vulnerable people of all ages are bearing the load. 

We must fix housing affordability.