Australian Greens Housing spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has expressed alarm at the figures released today from the Australian Bureau of Statistics from their Residential Property Price Index. The release shows that there was an overall 6.7% rise in house prices for the June 2021 quarter with Sydney and Canberra experiencing an unprecedented rise of over 8%.
Senator Faruqi said:
"These aren't just statistics, they represent the real experiences of families being priced out of owning their first home. If we don't do something about this broken system soon, there will be no houses for anyone but the very rich".
"The enormous rise in house prices is not just alarming, it is a reflection of just how dire the current state of housing is across the whole of Australia.
"The Liberal-Nationals and Labor parties continue to exacerbate the current situation through their refusal to change policies that favor investors and encourage market speculation in housing.
"House prices rose an alarming 8.1% just in the last quarter in Sydney, which means generations will be locked out of secure housing, all because both major parties have decided to favour investors who gamble on house prices.
"Every single capital city is experiencing the largest rise in house prices since 2015. This upward trend is not going to stop without serious action.
"The Greens are consistently the only strong voice calling for a fair housing system.
"We must end unfair tax breaks like negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts. The federal government has to take responsibility for making sure everyone has a secure and safe home and this means investing to build one million affordable public and community homes."
