Quarterly Essay 92: The Great Divide
Australia's Housing Mess and How to Fix It
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Quarterly Essay 92: The Great Divide
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Narrated by:
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Alan Kohler
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By:
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Alan Kohler
About this listen
One of the great mysteries of Australian life is that a land of sweeping plains, with one of the lowest population densities on the planet, has a shortage of land for houses. As a result, Sydney’s median house price is the second most expensive on Earth, after Hong Kong’s.
The escalation in house prices is a pain that has altered Australian society; it has increased inequality and profoundly changed the relationship between generations – between those who have a house and those who don't. Things went seriously wrong at the start of the twenty-first century, when there was a huge and permanent rise in the price of housing. But what actually happened? And what to do now? As Alan Kohler explains, “the solutions are both complex and simple, difficult and easy: supply must be increased and superfluous demand reduced.”
In this crisp, clarifying and forward-looking essay, Alan Kohler tells the story of how we got into this mess – and how we might get out of it.
Alan Kohler is finance presenter on ABC News and a columnist for The New Daily. A former editor of The Age and The Australian Financial Review, he founded the Eureka Report and has written for The Australian, AFR, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald. His books include It's Your Money.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2023 Alan Kohler (P)2023 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.What listeners say about Quarterly Essay 92: The Great Divide
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Ruby
- 03-03-2024
The history of rising house prices in Australia is just as interesting as the suggestions to fix it
I really enjoyed the way Alan Kohler set out the issues with housing affordability, the history, the various attempts to fix it and how they failed, as well as how decisions made by previous governments intended to focus on something entirely different (e.g shares) created a culture of property speculation for investment rather than ensuring people have enough homes to live in. The suggested twist at the end was also fascinating and has me wondering if Alan where looking at this now, would he throw increasing options to work from home (and enshrining them in workplace law) into the mix.
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- Christopher McHenry
- 09-12-2023
Well researched
In this quarterly essay, Alan Kohler does an excellent job of setting out the causes and potential solutions to Australia’s housing crisis. Clearly his intention is to convince readers that the problem is solvable. Unfortunately, his work has had the exact opposite effect: I’ve never been more convinced that fixing this problem is a hopeless cause.
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- Brian Chan
- 16-12-2023
Comprehensive coverage of how Australian housing situation got to where it is
For those who do not know the history of Australian housing market, tax incentives, and interested to know about the structural imbalance, listening to this essay is a good investment of time.
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- David
- 01-05-2024
Makes a lot of sense
A challenging situation that successive governments have avoided. Real and practical response offered here. Definitely worth considering seriously.
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- Anonymous User
- 28-11-2023
Fantastic essay
Thought provoking lecture on our housing crisis, how we got here and suggestions to remediate.
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1 person found this helpful
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- dwabriz
- 05-12-2023
Good job Alan
A solid review of how we go to where are in housing & a sensible path to the future.
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- A
- 20-12-2023
What a man!
Alan you are the only person who has said everything I've always thought... we shouldn't want expensive houses... and I really thought I was stupid thinking this.
Wise words for a very wise man! Thank you!
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- Rod benson
- 25-12-2023
Concise, clever, 100% on point
Alan Koehler gets straight to the heart of the issue. Well researched well thought out and well spoken
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- Matthew Bell
- 29-01-2024
Great overview
Great history of our current state and what is occuring to get through it currently and proposed future.
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- Anonymous User
- 01-02-2024
Great summary and interesting insights
Really enjoyed. I wasn’t sure whether it would be a dull topic or not but Kohler’s arguments and structure made the essay easy to follow and very interesting
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