Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Scullion, the Minister representing the Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. Is the minister aware that families now need to earn $148,000 a year in Sydney, $133,000 a year in Perth, $112,000 a year in Canberra, $110,000 a year in Darwin and $97,000 a year in Brisbane just to afford the repayments on a medium priced home? Is the minister further aware that data from the 2006 census showed that the median family income in these cities is up to $61,000 a year less than these amounts? Doesn’t this show why many young families can no longer afford to buy their own home? Isn’t this a direct result of nine interest rate hikes in a row that have added $433 to monthly repayments on a $300,000 mortgage? How could the government have broken its 2004 promise to young families that it would ‘keep interest rates at record lows’?

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Community Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I rose, my colleague Senator Johnston noted that those figures are nonsensical. I would have to agree with him. I think you must be quoting from some articles by political correspondent Steve Lewis. On one occasion, in one article, he quoted it as ALP research—hardly what we would call reliable in this environment. In the other article, in the Advertiser, he referred to it more accurately as alarming—and alarming I think it is. Now we have the Australian Labor Party providing their own research that indexes the amount of money that people earn against the amount of money people may spend on a house. So the outrageous headlines are: ‘$61,000 short! Can’t possibly afford to buy a house. Can’t possibly afford payments.’

Perhaps we should look for some fairly reliable facts. The Reserve Bank has indicated that one-quarter of owner-occupier borrowings are more than a year ahead on their scheduled mortgage repayments. In other words, 25 per cent of people are doing so well that they have paid a year in advance of their mortgage repayments. Further, 50 per cent of people who are paying off their mortgage at the moment are more than one month ahead in their repayments. There was an article in the Australian on 27 July 2007 that said:

The Reserve Bank estimates that less than 1 per cent of all home borrower households are more than 90 days behind on their repayments ...

That is right: less than one per cent. So there is no point in pulling out some sort of weird ALP driven data that means absolutely nothing. It is all about fearmongering. What about providing the Australian public with a few facts?

There are some real issues in terms of housing affordability. As I said in this place the other day, if you are buying a $300,000 home in New South Wales, you will be providing $8,990 to the New South Wales state government coffers—to the Labor Party. If those opposite want to do something about housing affordability generally, they should get on to their state and territory colleagues and say: ‘Stop the love affair with money. Stop the love affair with taxes. Start looking after the constituents.’ It is not rocket science. Buying a $300,000 home can be very difficult for people in New South Wales. Having that $8,990 would be a welcome relief for the taxpayers of New South Wales.

Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Perhaps the minister could answer it. Is the minister aware that first home buyers now spend one dollar out of every three they earn paying off their mortgage? Doesn’t this mean that mortgage repayments are using up more of a first home buyer’s income than ever before? How will our kids ever be able to buy their own home when the amount they spend on mortgage repayments on top of child care, petrol and groceries keeps going up?

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Community Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is very courageous to come into this place and ask, ‘What about first home buyers?’ I will tell you what the Commonwealth and the states have been doing about first home buyers. We provide about $7,700 generally across the board—it varies from state to state—to help home buyers out. If you are a newly married couple in South Australia buying your first home for $300,000, do you know what the Labor Party in South Australia takes off you? Eleven thousand three hundred dollars. Sorry; we give with one hand and the Labor government in South Australia takes it straight from them. A single person in Victoria who has saved up to buy their first home at $400,000 is going to have to tighten their belt a little bit because they have got to come up with another $19,660. So do not have the Labor Party come into this place and lecture us about helping out first home buyers. That is what we have done and you have not. (Time expired)