Page 8 - Wealth-Adviser-Issue-113 (FWP)

ISSUE 113
JUNE 2025

REBUILDING THE

AUSTRALIAN DREAM

PRACTICAL AND

PHILOSOPHICAL

STRATEGIES

FOR HOUSING

AFFORDABILITY

AND FINANCIAL

STABILITY
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BY WEALTH ADVISER increase on record (ABS, 2023). This rapid growth has
placed immense pressure on housing markets, especially in
Introduction: The Australian Housing Crisis in major cities like Sydney and Melbourne, where demand far
1 Context outstrips available homes.
Australia’s housing crisis is not just a headline—it is a The consequences of this mismatch are profound.
lived reality for millions. The ‘Australian Dream’ of home Housing stress is now a daily reality for many families, with
ownership, once a cornerstone of the nation’s identity, a growing number of Australians spending more than 30%
is now slipping out of reach for an increasing number of of their income on housing costs. Homelessness is also on
citizens. Soaring property prices, rising rents, and a growing the rise, with vulnerable groups—including young people,
cohort of Australians experiencing housing stress or home- single-parent families, and older women—particularly affect-
lessness are just the visible symptoms of a much deeper ed. The crisis is not just about bricks and mortar; it is about
problem. This crisis is not simply a matter of supply and social cohesion, economic stability, and the very fabric of
demand; it is a complex interplay of demographic shifts, Australian society.
policy decisions, and philosophical questions about the kind The philosophical dimension of the crisis is equally
of society Australia aspires to be. important. Is housing a basic right, or is it simply a com-
Recent years have seen unprecedented population modity to be bought and sold? The Sustainable Population
growth, largely driven by immigration. As international Australia briefing note captures this tension: “Australia is
borders reopened after the pandemic, the influx of new facing a crisis in the affordability and quality of housing
residents was not matched by a corresponding increase which is leading to increased inequality and homelessness,
in housing supply. According to the Australian Bureau of threatening to shatter the social contract.” This statement
Statistics (ABS), Australia’s population grew by over 600,000 underscores the gravity of the situation and the urgent need
people in the year to September 2023—the highest annual for action.

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