The only thing to come out of Labor’s housing affordability summit today was to tell us something we already knew – first home buyers need more land release.
Labor ridiculed the Government’s national land audit to identify State, Federal and private land that could be released for housing, only to announce that Kevin Rudd will establish a Housing Supply Research Council.
In other words, Kevin Rudd’s solution to make houses more affordable is to set up another body to look into housing and land supply.
The Productivity Commission identified in 2004 that
“There is also scope to moderate price and affordability pressures over time by improving land release and planning approval processes.”
In the same report, the Productivity Commission noted that reducing State Governments’ reliance on stamp duties would help first home buyers.
Kevin Rudd has today missed an opportunity to get the States to agree to cut stamp duty.