Paul,

Borrowing a shedload of money to build social housing will have the benefit of creating social housing. However, as social housing will not yield financial returns, this would be a crappy investment for any future fund.

The real downside would be that this would pour petrol on the inflation fire and push interest rates even higher. This could also cost Aus its AAA investment rating that the coalition got after years of effort.

In all this is yet another tax/borrow and spend stupid idea.

I'd be quite happy to support the government borrowing further if it creates an economically sensible plan to solve the problem.
But I won't support the government wasting billions of dollars on ill-thought out plans that ultimately achieves little to nothing.

As stated previously -

"As for how to fix housing, I always said I believe the answer is huge big factories assembling relocatable homes on a production lines.
Use ready-made ready-to-assemble cheap imported components, that can be assembled using people on a work for the dole program, and who get paid double dole for full time work.
These people can learn their tasks via an app / prove their skills via a digital resume and who confirm their shifts via the mygov app.

Cut all costs;
Cut component costs, training costs, employment hiring costs and wage costs.

Arrange them like caravan parks, in low density areas with a accessible bus service (People can have food delivered these days) and sell the land off and move them further out of urban areas every 10 years or so, that way the government will get a return on the land, so that they can continue to buy more land further out as urban areas grow."

Has anyone else got a better more cost effective and more realistic plan?

Hi AC,

Good suggestions, there is a danger of government simply throwing money at a problem, without a real plan to achieve the objective. They need smart people involved, and I don't mean bureaucrats, people from within the housing and fiance industries. If you go to Sydney and catch the train, as it passes through Wolli Creek, take one look at the urban disaster private developers have created there. Looks spoofy when new, but give it 20 or 30 years and it will look like the worst of the worst council estates in Britain in the 70's. WE DON'T WANT THAT FOR BRISBANE, but its coming our way.

BTW where's the caravan park out your way? Friends said they are staying there.

Whatever happened to young people getting an old house & doing it up or getting a block of land & build a small home instead getting into 50 year mortgages to move into a 700 Grand home ?
Is it any wonder that developers, builders & real estate agents were able to get on the best roll in history with young people like this last generation ?
To want it all up front literally translates into forfeit of future !

One tiny suggestion of self-control & responsibility & the thread is dead !