Government needs to stem “exodus of first home buyers”: REIA

First home buyers are leaving the Australian residential market and the government must work to fix affordability, according to the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

The REIA’s CEO Amanda Lynch, at the Senate Economics References Committee Inquiry into Affordable Housing said that home ownership in Australia is falling and first home buyers are at record lows.

“Governments at all levels must address structural factors that reduce the responsiveness of supply to demand,” said Lynch.

“Projections from REIA’s recent roundtable at Parliament House showed the cumulative housing shortage is likely to increase from 100,000 dwellings in 2006 to 375,000 in 2015.

“Studies have found that the stability associated with home ownership ultimately contributes to positive social outcomes, such as improved education levels for children, better mental and physical health, and greater social connectedness and participation in local community and voluntary organisations,” she said.

Their recommendations include:

1. Assistance for first home buyers for both new and established property.
   
   
2. That international schemes, for instance releasing superannuation, be assessed and replicated.
   
   
3. Negative gearing be retained for investment to make the rental sector viable.
   
   
4. Conveyance stamp duties be abolished and replaced by a different source of revenue.
   
   
5. Time frames and release of land to be increased.