Alan Cadman (Mitchell, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House condemns the New South Wales Government for presiding over the highest amount of State and local government taxes and charges levied on the cost of a new home and for having the largest shortfall of broad hectare land provision of any State or Territory—putting the dream of home ownership out of the reach of New South Wales families.

This motion relates to the cost of housing and the damage that state governments are doing to the aspirations of young Australians. The incredible cost in taxes is wiping out the dream of homeownership for thousands of young Australians. The most important and cherished purchase that anybody will make is their home. After years of saving to get a deposit of five or 10 per cent, struggling young Australians, particularly in New South Wales, are finding that the task is beyond them and is getting further and further out of their reach. It is a deplorable situation. It is punishing young home buyers, limiting family size and, I believe, destroying their aspirations. All of this is imposed by a callous and greedy government.

For instance, in Sydney from 1990 until now land has risen from about 40 per cent of the total cost of the house-land package to well over 60 per cent. More than half the cost of a new home can be attributed to the land cost and more than half the cost of that land is state taxes, taxes imposed by the avaricious New South Wales government that are destroying the dreams and aspirations of the youngsters of New South Wales. The Australian house-land package is more expensive than in Las Vegas and Sacramento, the capital of California, but in Sydney it is more expensive than in Honolulu, San Francisco, Miami and even New York. Who would believe that the state of New South Wales could create a situation where house and land in our state is more expensive than in New York?

Home owners are seeking to establish a life for themselves, but let us analyse the taxes on a block of land: stamp duty to purchase the block for development is about $2,000 per block; stamp duty on the sale to the home buyer is about $17,000; water board section 73 tax is $12,000; council section 94 ranges from about $48,000 to $65,000—let’s say an average of $40,000; let’s be generous to local government—state infrastructure levy on north-western and south-western Sydney is $33,000; and GST is $35,000—all of which goes to the state government. There is a total cost on a block of land in taxes alone of $142,000 for every block sold in these new development areas.

It is an incredible charge, an incredible cost. Young people are being asked to borrow money to pay taxes to the New South Wales government. They are borrowing money not just over all of the state but in these new development areas. These taxes are being set aside to pay for schools, pay for railway lines and buy health services and hospitals in these new areas. Never before has a current generation been required to pay for current requirements. In a total period of 10 years, the additional money paid out in interest by young people will amount to $45,000 just to cover the costs of state taxes.

Interest alone works out at around an additional $96 per week, purely attributable to borrowing enough money to pay for those taxes. It is about $376 extra per month to pay for state taxes on every mortgage for every young person in New South Wales who is buying a block of land. It is a criminal activity. Australians want to marry. They want security and they need to own their own homes because it provides better health, greater security for bringing up their kids and greater self-confidence, and they move less frequently. It is a better lifestyle, a more confident and happier lifestyle, being destroyed by the current government of New South Wales.

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