Bill Shorten reaffirms Labor stance on negative gearing

Bill Shorten, in his budget reply speech last night, reaffirmed Labor’s commitment to restrict negative gearing to investors who purchased new housing if elected.

He claimed the current system gives investors "loaded dice" putting younger generations at a disadvantage.

It's a “bias” in the tax system that is shutting young people out of the housing market, Mr Shorten said.

“Getting together a 20 per cent deposit plus stamp duty is so much, much harder than it was 20 or 25 years ago,” the opposition leader said.

“It is even more difficult when your government uses your taxpayer money to subsidise the property investors bidding against you.”

Mr Shorten said his negative gearing rule changes were part of Labor’s plan to “stop intergenerational unfairness in our tax system”.

“A government must be brave enough and decent enough to stop the bias against first home buyers and young Australians and we will be that government,” Mr Shorten said.

He added “lectures about cutting back on smashed avo” were patronising to young people.

“You cannot have property investors playing with loaded dice against our young people, Generation Y and the Millennials,” Mr Shorten said.

However, according to recent HIA research, only 34 percent of Australians are aware of the proposed changes and understand it at some level, while others have no understanding.

While 52 percent of people believe rents will rise as a consequence of the changes. 

HIA Managing Director, Graham Wolfe said, "with 92 percent of all renters aspiring to buy their own home, Labor’s proposed changes will weigh heavily on their savings’ plans.“

"If these changes are made, rents will rise as supply dries up due to a lack of investment in new housing. This will make renting a home less affordable."

“If rents rise, renters saving for a deposit for their own home will take a backward step."

“We can’t solve the housing affordability challenge by taxing housing. This policy seeks to do just that,“ he concluded.

But Bill Shorten's 2019-20 Federal Budget reply headlines the overarching support of future housing in the previously announced National Housing Supply Council, national Housing Ministerial and National Housing Strategy, Nicholas Proud, CEO of PowerHousing Australia said.

It represents 32 of Australia’s largest Tier One and scale-growth Community Housing Providers.

Mr Proud said, “The Federal Opposition has shown a real commitment here to seeing the jobs, economic multipliers and adequate supply of housing become a national priority if they come to Government at the next election. 

"A commitment to delivering a massive 250,000 affordable rentals over a 10-year period with 20,000 to be built in the first three years with Community Housing Providers proponents of the task is a challenge CHPs are ready to take on.

“This 10-year subsidy combined with other elements such as build-to-rent, a Housing Minister, National Housing Strategy and reinstatement of a National Housing Supply Council, as promised, will tackle a housing downturn to preserve jobs, support state economies and deliver more dwellings.

“A focus on delivering expediting new NDIS investment is welcomed to capitalise on the recent momentum gained by the Agency if this shadow budget is eventually delivered.

“Whilst there is much to praise, there are tens of thousands of families in non-CHP properties who, over the next five years, are set to see the loss of the NRAS One incentives which started to lapse in December 2018.

"A response to support these non-CHP managed NRAS homes is critical and our CHP members will look to take up this challenge to seek a pragmatic solution here," Mr Proud concluded. 

Mr Shorten’s budget reply speech also mentioned plans to support build-to-rent schemes.