‘These geniuses’: PM’s generational housing gamble
Anthony Albanese is pursuing a “bold” policy with sweeping changes to tax concessions for homeowners but risks offending established investors who may not have expected the overhaul, a political expert says.
From July 2027, negative gearing will be removed for all homes except new-builds, while the 50 per cent capital gains tax relief for existing properties will be scrapped in favor of a new inflation-linked scheme.
The federal government has touted the changes as an effort to help young Australians, many of whom have been left out of the property market, buy their first homes.
Nearly half the electorate now consists of millennials and Gen Z, a group that analysts are trying to win over with Labor’s controversial budget.
Monash University politics expert Zareh Ghazarian told AAP the house tax changes were designed to counter accusations that the government was being too timid because of its massive 94-seat majority in parliament.
“The risk here, of course, is that it will upset those who did not expect such changes and those who have a long history of rental investment,” he said.
Associate Professor Ghazarian said the government “may lose some political skin” by not keeping its promise before the last election not to touch negative developments or capital gains.
“But in the long run, the calculation has to be that this is going to be a winner,” he said.
The opposition has vowed to repeal the changes if it wins the next election, describing them as attacks on targets.
“We will do everything we need to do to ensure these taxes are not imposed on Australians,” Opposition Leader Angus Taylor told ABC TV on Wednesday.
“The hostility will be huge and I think the government will have to give up a significant part or all of it,” he said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the coalition was repeating the political mistake it made before the last election, when it promised to scrap a modest tax cut announced in the 2025 budget.
“This is a repeat of what happened a year ago… these geniuses will go into the election saying they will repeal young Australians’ right to a fair vote,” he told parliament on Tuesday.
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
