' Bureaucratic standards are in no way market-based.'
All of them?

"But people forget about the impact of seemingly minor government rules like regulations that stipulate minimum dwelling sizes and quality," says Creighton.

Never mind income tax, which penalizes people for offering homes to let (whereas assessing the imputed rent of the land alone would have no such effect).

Never mind GST, which applies to new homes and therefore restricts supply, but doesn't apply to capital gains on second-hand homes although it's supposed to tax "value added".

Never mind stamp duty, which penalizes transactions needed to bring new housing to market.

Never mind payroll tax, which increases costs of development and construction.

Never mind municipal rating systems that penalize construction by including the values of buildings in the rating base and by charging for "services" that are needed by buildings (whereas rating the land value alone would have no such effect).

And for Mammon's sake don't mention the possibility of increasing land tax, imposing a higher holding cost on land so that the owners have to generate income from it by developing it, building on it, and seeking buyers or tenants.

Divert attention by picking on those evil commie meddlers who want an official system for measuring the energy efficiency of homes -- not IMPOSING energy efficiency, just measuring it so that buyers and tenants know what they're getting.

"Moreover, the proposed mandatory efficiency standards undermine the role of real estate agents," says Creighton. "Agents exist to bridge any knowledge gap between buyers, sellers and renters."

Bwa-ha-ha! Agents work for landlords and sellers, not tenants and buyers -- unless prospective tenants and buyers hire other agents, which they can ill afford to do.

"If the government wants to encourage energy-efficient products, it should alter the price of energy directly, which would make the installation of energy efficiency products more appealing and avoid the administration costs of heavy-handed regulations," says Creighton.

That's a good argument for a carbon price -- in the form of a straightforward carbon tax rather than an emissions trading system, the latter being a prime example of heavy-handed regulation. Glad we agree on something.

From the Centre of Independent Studies' web site:

>> (the author) Adam Creighton's areas of expertise include financial markets and services, tax and fiscal policy, superannuation, and political economy. Prior to joining the CIS Adam was a Senior Adviser to the Leader of the Opposition and economic adviser to the Shadow Assistant Treasurer.

He spent six months at The Economist in London in 2009, writing for the finance and arts pages. He has also written for The Spectator, Policy Review, The American Spectator and co-authored a chapter for Oxford University Press on funded retirement systems.

Adam completed a Master of Philosophy in Economics at Balliol College, Oxford in July 2008, as a Commonwealth Scholar.

He started his career at the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. For six years from 1995 he was an (award winning) checkout operator at Woolworths. <<

If the Leader of the Opposition (and economic adviser to the Shadow Assistant Treasurer) have been receiving advice from Adam, then I am not surprised why they have got it so wrong.

.

grputland nails it, imo.

"What is causing the housing affordability crisis in Australia? Land restrictions and low interest rates are typical answers."

Please explain to this country boy how "low interest rates" can be "causing the housing affordability crisis".

I guess it's simplistic, but do not "low interest rates" mean low repayments, which I'd have thought made housing more affordable than high interest rates would.

Economists are people that go to markets with nothing to sell, no ability to buy and a great urgency to talk.

To day they have had a field day at the market of Opinions.

An energy efficent house would be a plus for house afordability. Inefficent housing costs are what drains your ability to pay a mortgage.
People with their head screwed on will always have a house, it's a matter of recognising the money borrowed has to be paid back. That means working out your budget before you even contemplate looking.

"What is causing the housing affordability crisis in Australia?
Skeptic,
Australians.

More wan*er rubbish to rip money out of us, & employ more useless graduates in fairy floss disciplines, in the bureaucracy, to administer.

The whole thing is meaningless, unless you add in the behaviour of every resident.

I neither heat or cool my home.

Some people only heat or cool a single room.

A few actually temperature control their entire home.

A number I know, with newly built houses, did install complete temperature control, but few can afford to use it, in todays open plan homes.

This being the case an energy efficiency rating is about as useful as tits on a bull, in the real world.

Guess there must be a glut of arts grads, looking for jobs.

When will people realise that Australia is run BY politicians FOR politicians & for their mates, overseas cargo-cult-corporations and any unskilled foreigner who has wealth or/and ability to kiss Canberra ass.

Australia is NOT a democracy. Having a vote does not mean you have a say anymore. Hordes of imported tailored votes make sure of that. The process of NATION BUILDING has morphed into FEUDAL GOVERNMENT. Back to the very primitive roots of Democracy, but definitely not democracy.

Thus housing is meant to become unaffordable along with electricity, fuels, shipping, water and all the essentials of life.

That way politicians become Lords Ladies and Barons as is their want and YOU PAY FOR IT!

STOP the asphyxiation of IMMIGRATION NOW and let this country's DEMOCRACY BREATHE!

Oh and if IMMIGRATION continues against majority wishes then MARCH & VOTE for DETENTION CENTRES to be built next to Kevin Rudd's house and Malcolm Frasers Farms.

SEE what happens then!

I wonder about the energy efficiency of author Creighton's long bow, and what, exactly, he thinks he is shooting at.

I am hoping he has good friends high up in the Coalition, who pay him closer attention, now that Godwin Gretch is gone.