Episode 15 - Get Angry About Housing (feat Karl Fitzgerald)
Jeremy is joined by Karl Fitzgerald from the Renegade Economists radio show/podcast, and the man behind the recent research into vacancy rates that explodes the government's "it's a problem of supply" lie. And Cam Smith from Gather Around Me returns to tell us what's stuck in his craw.
Karl's Links:
- Prosper's vacancy report prominently referenced by the UN.
- The report quantifying monopoly rents Karl referred to.
- The numerous democratic reform projects underway
- An implementation plan
01:16 Vacancy rates - the problem is not supply
04:20 How did the housing disaster happen in the first place
08:22 Ways to tackle it?
09:28 The Victorian government's largely terrible ideas #1 - first home buyer's grant to wreck regional areas
11:45 How do we get government to realise how terrible these grants are? This "policy fraud"?
13:47 Terrible idea #2 - stamp duty exemption
17:02 Idea #3 - releasing more land. Surely that's got to be good, right?
19:00 But the developers *don't* release the land. They drip-feed the land to maximise prices.
20:20 "Use it or lose it" clauses?
22:20 Make developers contribute to infrastructure
22:50 developers cutting corners and creating long-term problems - and regulators letting them
30:14 Idea #4 - penalties for those who keep land vacant? And are they going to use an effective measure for assessing this?
33:00 Tenants unable to enforce rights
35:03 How about improving tenants' rights compared with landlords'? Both addresses the victims of the current situation, and discourages the making of more in future.
37:00 corrupt monopolies and monopoly rents
40:12 inefficient taxes
41:00 land taxes as a solution? No, seriously - land taxes as a solution
42:39 how the Libs wrecking the NBN has made housing worse
43:40 the damage of 30 years of privatisation
44:15 reining in negative gearing
45:58 cost of land price growth
46:15 land taxes. Recommended by economists.
50:55 increase CGT?
51:52 another point about land taxes.
53:56 how could you get a land tax through politically?
58:05 an intermediate step, more effectively penalising land banking?
01:00:34 the victims of the status quo
01:01:43 the media unwilling to stand up to the property lobby
01:04:34 Cory's terrible ideas
01:06:14 reining in family trusts?
01:06:48 inheritance taxes
01:07:29 How to lobby the Andrews government to more effectively rein in land banking
01:09:58 the stupid argument that cutting negative gearing would push up rents
01:16:17 Michaelia Cash and having to rely for change on MPs with huge investment portfolios
01:22:54 Other stories from the week: Hanson damaging WA Libs; Brandis "cannot recall"; Libs doubling down on the insane Centrelink robodebts and breaching privacy of citizens; ACL vs Rainbow Flags
01:34:05 Australia Vs Humanity
01:38:10 Stuck in my Craw (Cam Smith)