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Aussie Home Loans has urged the federal government to help first home buyers by including 10-year housing development forecasts in its budgets.
Aussie’s submission to the Senate Inquiry into Housing Affordability said the government had a role to play in ensuring a consistent supply of new housing.
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The 10-year plan would outline where new development should occur and identify constraints around land releases or infrastructure.
It would be driven by Canberra but would also rely on support from state and local levels of government, according to Aussie.
“Given the role state and local government would need to play in this strategy, delivery against ongoing housing targets should be a prerequisite for federal infrastructure support,” it said.
Aussie also recommended that the government gradually reduce stamp duty and potentially use a broad property tax to fill the revenue gap.
Stamp duty was so high that it stopped people moving to houses that best suited their present needs, Aussie said.
“The strongest example of this is the deterrent to ‘downsizers’ who might otherwise be freeing up larger residences to accommodate young families,” the submission said.
Aussie also urged the government to “limit excessive tax concessions to investors” to help reduce the inflationary impact on property prices.
Chief executive Ian Corfield said it was difficult for first home buyers to get into new and established homes.
“We believe that declining home ownership rates among first home buyers should be addressed urgently by the federal government through a range of measures that encourage efficient housing supply, reducing inflationary housing demand and smoothing of market volatility,” he said.
