tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/reverse-mortgages-8755/articlesreverse mortgages – The Conversation2023-01-11T19:09:18Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1970272023-01-11T19:09:18Z2023-01-11T19:09:18ZThe housing wealth gap between older and younger Australians has widened alarmingly in the past 30 years. Here’s why<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503967/original/file-20230111-21-8wf3yl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=405%2C352%2C2794%2C1450&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The housing wealth gap between younger and older Australians is undeniably growing.</p>
<p>Our newly published <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14036096.2022.2161622">study</a> attempts to find out how much it has grown by estimating the gap in the home equity of older people (Australians in their 50s) and younger people (Australians in their 30s) in 1997–98 and 2017–18. </p>
<p>Adjusted for inflation, we find that in 1997-98 the younger group had mean housing equity of A$97,799 compared to the older group’s $255,323 – meaning the older group had 161% more equity home equity than the younger group: <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503932/original/file-20230110-22-749og5.PNG">2.6</a> times as much.</p>
<p>By 2017–18 the younger group had mean equity of $140,080 but the older group’s mean equity had increased more to $467,182 – meaning the older group had 234% more equity than the younger group: 3.3 times as much.</p>
<p>The housing wealth gap between the old and young had grown from 161% to 234% – making it almost half as big again.</p>
<p>The increase in the gap between those we describe as the income-poor young and the income-rich old was even more alarming – a doubling from 532% to 1230%. </p>
<h2>Two things have widened the divide</h2>
<p>Our study draws on the 1997-98 and 2017-18 Bureau of Statistics surveys of income and housing and identifies two forces widening the gap.</p>
<p>The first relates to home ownership. While ownership rates for both groups have fallen, the decline has been steeper among the young (from 52% to 40%) than the old (80% to 69%). </p>
<p>The second relates to the different trajectories in the growth of home equity among those who do own homes. In 1997-98, the average equity in the primary home of owners in the older group was 1.7 times that of owners in the younger group. By 2017-18 it was twice that of the younger owners.</p>
<hr>
<p><iframe id="snTiJ" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/snTiJ/9/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<hr>
<p>The increasing ownership gap turns out to have mattered more than the increasing gap in equity among those who do have homes.</p>
<p>We find that if the ownership gap had not widened, the overall intergenerational housing wealth gap would have been smaller at 200%, rather than 234%.</p>
<p>If the gap in home equity among those who owned homes had not widened, the gap would have been smaller at 215% rather than 234%.</p>
<h2>It’s not just age – there are other divides</h2>
<p>Housing inequality exists across other divides. In the table below we identify gaps across gender, location and income divides:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>comparing single women to single men, we find the advantage enjoyed by single women has shrunk from 72% to 42%</p></li>
<li><p>comparing Australians in regional and urban areas we find the advantage enjoyed by those in cities has climbed from 46% to 93%</p></li>
<li><p>comparing Australians in the bottom and top thirds of income (adjusted for family size) we find the housing wealth gap has widened from 94% to 191%.</p></li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p><iframe id="NDuYI" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/NDuYI/3/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<hr>
<p>The age-based housing wealth gap is much greater than these other divides. But it becomes greater still when it interacts with those divides. </p>
<p>The greatest combined divide is between people who are both younger and income-poor and people who are both older and income-rich. </p>
<p>In 1997-98, the housing wealth gap between these two groups was an outsized 532%. Over the following decades, it more than doubled to 1230%. </p>
<hr>
<p><iframe id="vfOmS" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/vfOmS/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<hr>
<h2>Action is becoming urgent</h2>
<p>Our findings put beyond doubt that younger people are falling further behind older people in terms of home ownership. </p>
<p>While some of this might reflect a shift in young people’s investment preferences toward non-housing assets, we find young non-owners also have less non-property wealth than owners. </p>
<p>It makes urgent the need to act on both the affordability of housing and the security of tenure for renters.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-rent-crisis-is-set-to-spread-heres-the-case-for-doubling-rent-assistance-196810">The rent crisis is set to spread: here's the case for doubling rent assistance</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Our finding that older Australians enjoy higher growth in home values than young Australians provides support for encouraging the use of <a href="https://theconversation.com/ageing-population-calls-for-more-reverse-mortgages-39428">equity-release</a> (“reverse mortgage”) schemes to unlock their housing wealth, relieving younger Australians of some of the tax burden of supporting them.</p>
<p>Although <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-social-policy/article/housing-equity-withdrawal-perceptions-of-obstacles-among-older-australian-home-owners-and-associated-service-providers/268F54A8EAA1E9ECA118E243505AA9FD">obstacles remain</a>, the benefits to both older Australians and less well-off younger taxpayers would be considerable.</p>
<p>In the past 30 years the housing wealth gap between income-poor young Australians and income-rich older Australians has doubled to more than 1000%. Our society will hold together better if we do what we can to wind it back.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/197027/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Ong ViforJ is the recipient of an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (project FT200100422). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Phelps does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The gap in housing wealth between older and younger Australians has widened from 161% to 234% – making it almost half as big again.Rachel Ong ViforJ, ARC Future Fellow & Professor of Economics, Curtin UniversityChristopher Phelps, Research Fellow, School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Curtin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/394282015-03-31T19:09:04Z2015-03-31T19:09:04ZAgeing population calls for more reverse mortgages<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/76428/original/image-20150330-25070-1tl3o8p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Financial System Inquiry has suggested allowing more Australians to tap the equity in their home would boost the efficiency of Australia's financial system.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Image from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Reverse mortgages are a way to release the equity in a home, which is an important component of wealth for many Australians. </p>
<p>Such mortgages have been proposed by the <a href="http://fsi.gov.au/">Financial System Inquiry</a> as a way to support the dissipation of wealth by retirees and boost the efficiency of Australia’s financial system.</p>
<p>The following chart shows the stark increase in mortgage lending by Australian banks since the global financial crisis (GFC). <a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-banks-are-too-exposed-to-mortgages-but-what-if-the-world-was-flat-31000">Australian banks hold approximately A$1.3 trillion in mortgages.</a></p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/76264/original/image-20150327-16112-131rvgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mortgage loans provided by Australian banks (Authorised deposit-taking Institutions)</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australian Prudential Regulation Authority</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Reverse mortgages have matched this growth in relative terms but remain at the margin, with a total exposure of A$2.9 billion (see the line at the bottom of the chart), far below standard mortgages and higher risk loans such as interest-only and low-documentation loans. Despite this growth in volume, the number of lenders has shrunk over time. According to the Financial System Inquiry, more than 15 lenders existed before the GFC but just five remain today.</p>
<p>Why are mortgages so popular and reverse mortgages not so, despite an ageing population with many billions of home equity waiting to be released?</p>
<h2>How reverse mortgages work</h2>
<p>A reverse mortgage allows homeowners to access a lump sum or an annuity, using their home as collateral. The benefit of reverse mortgages is that borrowers often continue to live in the property until they die. The decision to sell a house is often an emotional one and can be avoided with this product because the loan may be repaid from the sale of the house after death. </p>
<p>Reverse mortgages may also be used to fund outgoings or, in aged care, accommodation bonds that are typically in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. </p>
<p>Alternatives exist: Australians who wish to access home equity often prefer to sell the home and buy or rent a smaller one. This decision may trigger costs such as capital taxes and other fees but may also have merits, as retirees move into a home of the space and standard they require. Free cash may then be converted into annuities, funding a monthly income for instance.</p>
<h2>How does a reverse mortgage differ from a standard mortgage?</h2>
<p>In a reverse mortgage, the loan amount increases over time, up to a limit, as the borrower draws on the line of credit. The loan amount grows further as interest is added to the outstanding sum. As borrowers often have limited other assets and income with which to repay the loan, and if they enjoy a long life, the loan amount can quickly compound to unexpected levels. </p>
<p>To protect consumers (covered by the National Consumer Credit Protection Act), legal and financial advice via standardised calculators must be provided to customers for these products. In addition, banks provide a “no negative equity” guarantee, which means the loan amount cannot exceed the property’s value.</p>
<p>Finally, interest rates are generally higher than for standard home loan products due to less competition in this sector and higher risks for the lender. In this part of the market lenders tend to provide no more than 50% of a property’s value while standard mortgages tend to be around 80% of value - higher if mortgage insurance is used.</p>
<h2>What are the risks for lenders?</h2>
<p>The no negative equity guarantee may result in losses if loan amounts exceed property values. Despite generous collateral buffers, this can happen in a number of ways. First, home prices may fall. It is not unreasonable in financial markets to see drops equivalent to prior rises. </p>
<p>In addition, home owners have a right to live in the property and repayment occurs only after death. If a borrower enjoys a long life after taking out a reverse mortgage, or if the loan amount accrues at a higher rate than house prices the lender can be caught by the no-negative-equity guarantee. Longevity risk is very difficult to assess as it requires predicting life expectancy.</p>
<p>Longevity risk is also subject to adverse selection. Unlike in life insurance, it is healthy consumers who are likely to be keen on reverse mortgages. </p>
<p>In addition, the limited number of reverse mortgages makes it difficult for banks to do their risk analysis. Lenders condition the loan amount on the age of borrowers (the older, the larger the possible loan amount). </p>
<p>Borrowers also have prepayment options and may refinance and prepay a reverse mortgage if they find a cheaper lender, exposing the original lender to further risk.</p>
<p>Another aspect is that once the negative equity threshold is reached the borrower has no further financial incentive to maintain the property, which could result in a further depreciation of the property value.</p>
<h2>How to promote home equity release</h2>
<p>Home equity release is positive for the efficiency of the Australian economy and in line with our concept of retirement. In the US the government provides no-negative-equity guarantees to take some risk off the lenders and support this market. </p>
<p>The Australian government might not be prepared to indemnify the industry for risk. However, the development of such markets could be supported with more general measures.</p>
<p>Firstly, <a href="https://theconversation.com/reverse-mortgages-need-a-rethink-if-theyre-the-new-age-pension-26433">homes may be further recognised in the means test that determines the age pension.</a> Such a measure may better match the needs of the population. </p>
<p>Secondly, a big industry concern is the limited availability of risk transfer solutions, such as derivatives and securitisation structures, which would allow banks to reduce both house price risk and longevity risk, at reasonable cost. It is difficult for banks to hedge or transfer longevity and house price risk. This is something of a catch-22 for the sector - only more equity release may lead to more risk transfer solutions and vice-versa.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/39428/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Harry Scheule does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Reverse mortgages are a way to release the equity in a home, which is an important component of wealth for many Australians. Such mortgages have been proposed by the Financial System Inquiry as a way to…Harry Scheule, Associate Professor, Finance, UTS Business School, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/264332014-05-11T19:20:19Z2014-05-11T19:20:19ZReverse mortgages need a rethink if they’re the new age pension<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48103/original/5tgdtmr3-1399594506.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Reverse mortgages can be risky for both borrowers and lenders.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.aag.com/retirement-reverse-mortgage-pictures">Flickr/American Advisors Group</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Commission of Audit has <a href="http://www.ncoa.gov.au/report/phase-one/part-b/7-1-age-pension.html">recommended</a> including homes above a certain value in the means test that determines who gets the age pension and how much. Under the proposal, homes valued in excess of A$500,000 would be assessable for singles, while for couples the trigger would be A$750,000. </p>
<p>The family home is currently exempt from the assets test but the commission argues this is inequitable because it means high levels of wealth are sheltered. It suggests a more comprehensive means testing regime be put in place by 2027-28.</p>
<p>If this proposal is picked up by the federal government, it would see a sizable group of retirees required to call on the equity in their homes to help fund their retirement. </p>
<p>It would be a brave government that “forced” pensioners to sell their homes to release that equity, which makes reverse mortgages a likely tool for retirees who need to convert their home into cash flow.</p>
<p>Even now, a reverse mortgage can be an alternative to “downsizing” into a smaller and cheaper home to release funds for retirement.</p>
<h2>How reverse mortgages work</h2>
<p>A reverse mortgage allows homeowners to access a loan, or a regular stream of cash (an annuity), using their home as collateral. Borrowers continue to live in the property until death – or they move into aged care – after which the loan is repaid from the sale of the house. </p>
<p>The mortgage can apply to the full value of a property, or borrowers may be able to access “residual value protection”, allowing them to set aside a portion of the house’s value to be available for aged care or as an inheritance.</p>
<p>Interest rates are generally higher than for standard home loan products due to less competition in this sector and higher risks for the lender.</p>
<p>For some years now, on the back of the lessons learnt from the global financial crisis, there have been government-imposed rules around “negative equity” that prevent lenders from extracting repayments beyond the value of the house. This means lenders can suffer a loss if the loan amount exceeds the value of the house at the date of the sale, something that may happen in a softening property market.</p>
<p>Reverse mortgages involve compounding interest, where interest charges are added onto the loan as they accrue. This means the loan amount can rise quickly.</p>
<p>Taking out a reverse mortgage can affect the availability of funds for major items such as aged care and bequests, and it can have an impact on other family members who may live in the house. Ultimately reverse mortgages demand a much higher degree of financial literacy from individuals, who may need professional advice on issues such as tax and Centrelink implications.</p>
<h2>Could we end up like the US?</h2>
<p>Despite the fact that reverse mortgages helped send mortgage insurer the Federal Housing Administration bankrupt in the US, the market there is <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/17/us-banking-reversemortgages-idUSBREA2G05T20140317">returning</a>.</p>
<p>How would increased demand for reverse mortgages change the Australian financial system? </p>
<p>The bulge of baby boomers entering retirement, along with a change to means testing along the lines proposed, could be expected to lead to an increase demand in such products. In theory, new lenders would be attracted into the market, thus increasing competition and driving interest rates down (in relative terms, against the risk-free rate).</p>
<p>Three main sources of risk are apparent, the first of which is declining real estate values, or the risk of negative equity. The loan amount may end up being larger than expected if the borrower enjoys a long life or property values fall. </p>
<p>Second, with a reverse mortgage the lender generally has no recourse to assets other than the home. Third, at this stage of life borrowers may neglect maintenance and property improvements, eroding the value of the home.</p>
<p>Many of these risks, in particular real estate values and an ageing population, are systematic and may become systemic. Should reverse mortgages enjoy significant growth, as projected, Australian lenders would have increased exposure to house price risk. If house prices dropped, more defaults would occur.</p>
<p>The impact of growth in reverse mortgages on the housing market itself may be limited, as properties are sold only after death or upon a move into aged care. But there may be a decrease in downsizing activity if these products become more popular.</p>
<h2>An alternative to bank lending</h2>
<p>Currently, reverse mortgages are mainly provided by the banking sector, which is already over-exposed to mortgages. At the same time, the superannuation sector is looking for long-term investment opportunities. Why not create financial products where super funds provide cash flow for retirees in exchange for access to the value in their homes?</p>
<p>Some super fund members may not want further exposure to Australian real estate, particularly if they are already house owners, but this could be an additional option in the current portfolio of investment choices offered by funds to their members. </p>
<p>The outcome might be comparable to the situation in overseas pension systems – such as Germany’s – where pensions are organised to a large degree as intergenerational wealth transfers, where one generation pays for the next generation. </p>
<p>Such a system could increase the resilience and efficiency of the Australian financial system.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/26433/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Harry Scheule does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Commission of Audit has recommended including homes above a certain value in the means test that determines who gets the age pension and how much. Under the proposal, homes valued in excess of A$500,000…Harry Scheule, Associate Professor, Finance, UTS Business School, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/220002014-02-04T19:43:50Z2014-02-04T19:43:50ZYour home as an ‘ATM’: home equity a risky welfare tool<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/40164/original/782nx7h6-1391048266.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Australians of all ages are lining up to tap the equity in their home, but as a policy solution for welfare it comes with many risks.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Julian Smith/AAP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Perceptions of the family home have changed dramatically in recent years.</p>
<p>Once viewed as a tool to ensure low housing costs in old age, a more complex and wide-ranging welfare role for home ownership has emerged. A suite of mortgage products are transforming the family home from “bricks and mortar” into a liquid resource that owners can dip into to meet spending needs when required. </p>
<p>The scale of equity borrowing activity has been immense in Australia, with the total value amounting to over two-thirds of the total flow of funds from housing into the cash economy during 2001-2008. </p>
<p>One in five Australian owners dipped into their housing equity every year over the last decade. Home owners, particularly those in retirement transition years, have continued to withdraw equity despite the global financial crisis. </p>
<h2>Policy pressure</h2>
<p>Interest in withdrawing home equity has in part been driven by fiscal policy responses to our ageing population. For example, the Productivity Commission recently recommended that home owners release equity to help pay for aged care needs. </p>
<p>But equity borrowing is used by home owners throughout their life, not just in old age. Financial innovations have turned the family home into an “ATM”, with borrowers drawing down their housing equity as and when they choose. And so the family home is being positioned at the centre of an asset based approach to the management of lifetime welfare. </p>
<p>Tapping home equity can bring immense financial benefits to home owners, especially baby boomers who have reaped huge windfall gains from rising house prices across the millennium. Now approaching or in retirement, the majority are home owners. Equity borrowing could prolong their financial independence and promote “ageing in place” despite escalating age related costs such as health bills.</p>
<p>It can also enhance the intergenerational flow of financial benefits. For example, owner parents might roll out housing equity to help finance the education costs of children. What’s more, parents may use equity release to help fund their adult childrens’ first home deposits.</p>
<h2>Real risks</h2>
<p>But equity borrowing can also expose the owner to uncomfortable levels of risk, especially those who have reached or will shortly reach the end of their working careers. </p>
<p>Firstly, there’s the real danger of inadequate or inappropriate advice, due to the often complex nature of mortgage products. </p>
<p>Because equity borrowing involves additions to mortgage debt that have to be repaid in the future, borrowers also take on repayment risks. These risks are often precipitated by adverse life events such as divorce, ill-health or unemployment </p>
<p>Our research shows that equity borrowers approaching or in retirement (aged 45 years or over) have outstanding mortgages that are roughly 1.5 times the level owed by other similarly aged mortgagors. The drawdown of housing equity by ageing parents will also reduce bequests to adult children. Our research found this to be a source of friction that can fracture relationships between parents and children. </p>
<h2>What’s required</h2>
<p>Getting policy settings right is critical to help people tap their housing equity in secure ways. Misguided equity borrowing could result in growing numbers of home owners entering retirement with large outstanding mortgage debts. </p>
<p>Consumer understanding of equity borrowing products is essential to financially responsible management of housing wealth. Home owners cashing in housing equity should be made fully aware of the safeguards afforded to them under consumer protection laws. Currently, product disclosure details are invariably technically complex and obscure.</p>
<p>The intergenerational implications of equity borrowing cannot be ignored. The “great Australian dream” of owning a home is increasingly out of reach for young Australians, who have been dubbed “Generation rent”. However, those baby boomer parents that secured home ownership “careers” have reaped large windfall housing gains. A willingness to gift some of their gains to help children secure a foothold in home ownership could be the source of a growing rift among Generation rent. Home ownership prospects could come to depend more and more on parents’ housing wealth and their willingness to use equity borrowing products. </p>
<p>But is this growing reliance on equity borrowing products misplaced? We estimate that 642,000 individuals left home ownership between 2001 and 2010 and did not return by 2010. Many left because of financial difficulties, in part due to crippling mortgage repayments, but also precipitated by separation, divorce, ill-health and redundancy. Might it now be time for innovative mortgage products that help home buyers ride out these threats, by allowing them to swap investment returns on their home for lower housing costs?</p>
<p>There is a growing international interest in such financial products because they help home owners better cope with the risks that changing demographics and insecure employment conditions are inflating.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This is the second piece in our Housing 2020 series, exploring the major policy issues facing housing over the next five years. Click on the links below to read the other pieces.</em></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-why-negative-gearing-is-bad-policy-21882">Explainer: why negative gearing is bad policy</a></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/aussie-rules-for-overseas-buyers-wont-solve-londons-housing-bubble-22745">Aussie rules for overseas buyers won’t solve London’s housing bubble</a></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/22000/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>This article draws on research conducted as part of two Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute projects. Project 81004 involves Rachel Ong, Therese Jefferson and Siobhan Austen from Curtin University, Gavin Wood (RMIT) and Marietta Haffner (Delft University). Project 53011 involves Rachel Ong, Gavin Wood, Susan Smith (University of Cambridge) and Melek Cigdem (RMIT).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>This article draws on research conducted as part of Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute project PRO/81004 involving Rachel Ong, Therese Jefferson and Siobhan Austen from Curtin University, Gavin Wood (RMIT), Marietta Haffner (Delft University in the Netherlands, and PRO/53011 involving Rachel Ong, Gavin Wood, Melek Cigdem (RMIT) and Susan Smith (University of Cambridge).</span></em></p>Perceptions of the family home have changed dramatically in recent years. Once viewed as a tool to ensure low housing costs in old age, a more complex and wide-ranging welfare role for home ownership has…Rachel Ong ViforJ, Associate Professor , Curtin UniversityGavin Wood, Professor of Housing, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.