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The Forum > Article Comments > Busting the boomers > Comments

Busting the boomers : Comments

By Damian Jeffree, published 27/11/2006

Baby boomers may have to give up some of their ill-gotten gains to achieve a more equitable future.

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“significantly devalued the lifetime earnings of non-homeowners, particularly young people."”

I would have thought “young people” would not be in a position to have reached their “lifetime” earnings, unless they expect to die immediately, in which case, they will have no need for any earnings at all.

This article reads like just another misrepresentation by the manipulative (or lack of understanding by the incompetent) of how the affordability equation works.

If, God forbid, some socialist swill humpers were to win federal government and they were to stuff the economy, like Keating did with the “recession we had to have” and interest rates of 17% +, house prices would drop back to less than ½ what they are now and when earnings collapsed in the face of spiraling unemployment, house prices would drop even further.

Ultimately the 30% of gross earnings rule still applies to cost of borrowings.
No point trying to argue against unfairness, the market is the market. Emotional outbursts of “unfair” will not change it and trying to meddle with it will result only in a short term distortion as our misspent taxes are applied to leveling the playing field, followed by greater pain for all (owners and renters) in the long run.

Such as alanhopkins suggestion to set interest costs aside on investment property, tried and failed by Keating in the late 1980’s, alan. The outcome was property owners simply increased the rental rates to the renters who had no where else to go and were stuck paying higher rents.

I guess when it comes to inter-generational conflict, I can afford to rent a young thug to sort out anyone anticipating an intergenerational conflict which might be headed my way, I am sure they would be pleased to earn any extra they can (oh this thread is too much of a joke to take seriously).

My daughter is 26, buying her second property. She has worked hard and done it all herself.

Those folk who moan, would moan even if houses came free with cornflakes.
Posted by Col Rouge, Monday, 27 November 2006 5:24:12 PM
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A few random thoughts.

Australia has not ever had a "baby boomer" Prime Minister.
The BB bubble will only last 10 years.
The majority of BB's had no super until Hawke/Keating.
BB's did not live at home when they were 25-30.

Generations Alphabet have exactly the same problems as all preceding generations and hard work, gaining skills and frugality are the answers, its called saving for yor future.
Posted by Steve Madden, Monday, 27 November 2006 5:28:15 PM
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What a relief to find I can be reviled simply because I’m looking old and wrinkled. He also serves who only stands and waits.

As it happened, I started with nothing, and still have most of it left. At least I've got a label, and the comfort that some people can hate me just because I might be a homeowner.

But enough of this self-absorbed spawn-of-Spock stuff - let's do a bit of history:

In 1979, Leonie Sandercock published a little book called "The Land Racket: The Real Costs of Property Speculation" ISBN 0 908094 43 4 (available in second-hand stores somewhere, maybe). She notes in her introduction that land speculation and scandals have a long history in Australia and ought to be considered "The National Hobby".

Among other things, Sandercock discusses the Whitlam Labor Government, and notes that:
“Whitlam waged an election campaign in 1972 which focused on [urban development] and promised to reduce the price of land and housing, overcome the sewerage backlog, channel money into updating urban public transport (rather than into building freeways) and concentrate resources into the ‘deprived areas’ of the big cities - ..”

She then discusses the difference between the reception, in Victoria and South Australia, of Whitlam and Uren’s Urban and Regional Development plans.

I’m sure other readers can put their two cents worth in on the Whitlam years, but it’s worth remembering that many of his supporters were baby boomers and some of them are probably renters, still.

The message here, (for spawn of spawn of Spock) is instead of blaming your landless condition on the dopey old bastard who maybe owns the place next to the one you maybe rent, do a bit of wider reading on the issue and try starting an intelligent conversation with a real person. He (or she) might tell you some history you haven't heard yet.
Posted by Sir Vivor, Monday, 27 November 2006 9:14:44 PM
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I have a daughter who is 29years old she is paying off a lovely home and has three rental properties and is having her fourth child next march. She is the main breadwinner, her husband works parttime. She left school after grade 10 because although she got excellent marks she hated school so I said if you can get a job you can leave. We tried a vocational course at Tafe first but at that point they wouldn’t let you do a training course unless you were 17years old.

My question to the author of this article and to all these under thirties complaining out there is ,What were you doing all those years my daughter was achieving this?
That girl has worked her butt off.

If you had had children in your early twenties, by your late thirties or early forties there would have been another generation ready to step into the workforce and the ageing babyboomers wouldn’t be such a problem.

Anyway this idea that everyone is going to live until they are 80 is talked up by the superannunation funds and the government for their own purposes. If you read the funeral notices in the paper over a year you’ll will find that there are still plenty of people dying in their 40’s 50’s 60’s and 70’s all the time.

Notice when Costello talks about the problem he talks about the year 2040 that’s 34years away. A lot of the present 50year olds and 60year olds and 70year olds will be well and truly dead by then. So it must be the younger baby boomers he is talking about.
Even if he was only talking fifteen years down the track a lot of the present older baby boomers would still be dead.

A bigger problem facing you young ones is going to be that because you have put off having children there will be noone to man the stations unless you are going to have doddery old people in the army or manning the hospitals etc.
Posted by sharkfin, Tuesday, 28 November 2006 12:18:12 AM
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Col Rouge, I can't believe that you're another otherwise intelligent person who's been deceived into believing that "17%" rubbish. That episode in history was over 15 years ago and in a very different economic climate to the one we enjoy today. I could easily say that just a few years before Keating's 17%, interest rates were at a high of over 22% and guess who was Treasurer then? None other than J W Howard, but that was back in the bad old days when interest was fixed by Government and money was rationed to lenders. It was Keating who actually freed up the market that eventually led to an historically low interest period, but just you wait until the present mineral boom comes to an abrupt holt as surely it will. We're presently in a financial bubble and it's growing bigger and bigger every day. There's going to be one hell of a bang when it bursts. Why do you think Howard is forcing unmarried mothers and those with disabilities off welfare? Same with IR laws. He's been advised of what's coming and is preparing for it the best way he can....by screwing the workers and welfare recipients AGAIN! And I say "advised" because Howard doesn't have the foresight to think any further than winning the next election. His "advisers" have to do that for him.
Posted by Wildcat, Tuesday, 28 November 2006 10:34:03 AM
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Though no prior planning I'm an asset rich (I’ve only ever owned one modest dwelling on a small holding) but income poor, (lower than the age pension) self funded, pre boomer, retiree, struggling to survive in today’s civilization paradigm.

This debate/discussion will soon become totally irrelevant as energy depletion (peak oil) causes recession and then the greatest depression of all time. This whilst we attempt unsuccessfully to deal with climate change at the same time. It used to be “the economy stupid” but soon it will be the “ecology stupid” as we struggle to survive, let alone buy a home, in a world critically short of the elements that ensure survival of the selfish big brained mammal; water and food and shelter from the soon rapidly changing elements.

Global and local economic growth, that has increasingly become the “name of the game” but only since we discovered and employed the “once only” bonus of fossil fuels a short 150 or so years back, is about to stall, beginning in the US, very soon. Economic growth will not, can not continue with out this once only energy bonus. Have a look at this:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article15264.htm
Stop worrying about buying houses and start worrying about surviving in a very different environment. Get focused on that which matters. The alternatives to “oil” are totally inadequate to support our current western lifestyles.

Oo roo,

Bucko
Posted by Bucko, Tuesday, 28 November 2006 1:03:46 PM
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