Submission: Intergenerational Housing Inequity

Recommendations

1. Introduce or amend Human Rights legislation in every State and Territory in Australia that recognises and implements the right to adequate housing for all residents. 
2. Implement a strategy across all levels of government targeting 10% of all Australia’s housing stock to be public or community housing by 2036, ensuring positive outcomes for residents is the key objective of social housing strategies. 
3. Amend qualifying age for expedited wait-turn access to social housing to 55 for all applicants and 45 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders across all States and Territories 
4. National Cabinet to expand the Better Deal for Renters to ensure the intention of ensuring renters can find and retain stable, long-term and affordable housing. The revised Better Deal should include additional principles from National Association of Renters’ Organisation ‘The National Nine Principles for strengthening renters’ rights’ regarding: 
   1. Stability 
   2. Affordability 
   3. Liveability 
   4. Compliance & accountability 
   5. Management and security of tenants’ money (rental bonds) 
   6. Protection of private information and discrimination 
   7. Access to advice & advocacy for all renters 
   8. Universality of protections for all people renting their home 
   9. Using data to inform policy 
5. Federal Government to implement robust mechanisms to monitor and incentivise the rollout of improved Better Deal for Renters. 
6. Australia must coordinate with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to establish a national action plan and an Indigenous independent monitoring body to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. 
7. Australia must establish a Makarrata Commission to supervise negotiations on a national treaty and truth-telling to recognise the self-determination of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. 
8. Australia must implement legal reforms to protect and facilitate the return of Indigenous lands and reform the Native Title Act by: 
   1. providing sufficient resources; 
   2. revising evidentiary requirements; 
   3. including non-economic loss compensation;
   4. ensuring Free Prior, and Informed Consent; 
   5. remediating contamination; 
   6. Enabling land acquisition; and 
   7. enacting the Social Justice Package. 
9. Ensure the tax treatment of property ownership, including for investment purposes, aligns with community expectations for residential occupation of housing to be stable, long-term and affordable for occupiers. 
10. Remove capital gains tax discounts and other tax settings which incentivise owner behaviour away from providing stability of tenure for renters or prioritise the financial treatment of housing above its usage. 
    1. The Capital Gains Tax Discount should be reduced by 5% each year for 10 years until it is removed and a limited indexation adjustment reinstated for capital gains tax through transition. 
    2. Negative gearing and its impact on encouraging speculative investment practices should be considered as part of overall tax reform. 
    3. Interaction with state property taxes - such as land tax and stamp duty - should be considered with reference to incentives geared towards long-term residential availability and stability rather than empty, underused or commercial use of residential dwelling. 
11. Revise lending practice standards to ensure loans take proper consideration of costs and risks of owning property for investment purposes, including loans which facilitate an over-reliance on future (tax-free or reduced) capital growth at the cost of occupants' stability, health. 
12. Direct expenditure, including that previously funding tax discounts, towards: 
    1. funding gold standard energy-effi cient public and community housing to meet existing and projected unmet need, 
    2. funding work to deliver recommendations 4 and 5, in particular ensuring renters have access to advice and advocacy services at a level that meets the needs of the population, and supplementing state resources to do so. 
    3. ensuring funding of the National Association of Renters’ Organisations to provide national coordination and expertise to support and amplify renters’ experience of federal housing issues and policy decision-making.

Download submission