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Australia hit a disturbing milestone this week – recording the lowest ever number of affordable rental properties across the country.
And not a single property anywhere was deemed affordable for someone on Youth Allowance, according to Anglicare Australia’s Rental Affordability Snapshot for 2024.
These and other revelations reflect similar trends identified in other recent reports showing vacancy rates are down, property prices are up and interest rates are not expected to fall until later this year.
Data from CoreLogic, also released this week, found the number of suburbs where buying a home is cheaper than renting dropped to just 2.5% nationwide in March. This was the case in 52 out of 2,113 suburbs.
Curtin University’s Professor Rachel Ong Viforj says Australia’s housing system is broken, a culmination of successive governments failing to make shelter more affordable for low-to-moderate income Australians.
But the crisis has worsened since COVID with our preference for more space after months of being locked down and the return of international migrants seeking to study and fill job vacancies, in need of accommodation.
Ong Viforj says current housing policies just aren’t working and need to focus more on fixing both supply and demand.
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Margaret Easterbrook
Business Editor
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Rachel Ong ViforJ, Curtin University
Australia’s rental crisis has been a long-standing problem and will not be repaired unless there is real reform of both supply and demand issues.
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Kelly Saunders, University of Canberra
Lehrmann gave evidence in his case against Channel 10, but exercised his right to silence during the 2022 criminal trial. It shows the unfairness
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John Hawkins, University of Canberra
Australia’s inflation rate has halved, but it’s falling more slowly than it was, and previous high inflation is set to push up student debt.
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Simon Wilmot, Deakin University; James Barry, The University of Melbourne
Some of these men went from being indentured pearl divers to soldiers in Borneo. Other fled their home country as teenagers to earn money.
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Cally Jetta, University of Southern Queensland
Films about Australia’s efforts in WWI continue to exclude an Aboriginal presence – denying all of us access to their important stories.
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Jen Roberts, University of Wollongong
With so many people grieving, the notion of doing so in public was seen as tasteless and vulgar. Funerals became smaller, people put on a brave face in public and fewer people wore black.
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Dimitris Akrivos, University of Surrey
A harrowing and important depiction of a male victim of sexual abuse.
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
In this podcast, we're joined by independent economist Chris Richardson to discuss the upcoming budget and Australia's economic outlook.
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Stephanie Alice Baker, City, University of London
Social media has transformed how we connect and communicate online — affecting even how we get health information.
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James B. Dorey, University of Wollongong; Amy-Marie Gilpin, Western Sydney University; Rosalyn Gloag, University of Sydney
99.96% of bee species do not die after stinging. So why does everyone think they do?
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Lizzie Wright, University of Leeds
Though she appears to be a child, we soon learn Abigail is centuries old, and has developed a habit for ‘playing with [her] food’
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Politics + Society
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Meighen McCrae, Australian National University
With General John Monash in command and four companies of US soldiers fighting alongside the Australians, the battle was a resounding success, taking just 93 minutes
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Tracey Holmes, University of Canberra; Catherine Ordway, University of Canberra
The World Anti-Doping Agency stands by its handling of the allegations. So, why have some in the media and in the US been so quick to point the finger at China?
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
ASIO chief says technology companies should do more to work with security agencies to ensure access to encrypted messages, where that access is lawful.
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Health + Medicine
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Dr Kathy Gibbs, Griffith University
One in 20 Australians has ADHD. But some people call the condition ADD. What’s the difference?
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Environment + Energy
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Gregory Moore, The University of Melbourne
Many in the wider community still see sugar gums as risky trees that drop dangerous branches. But there is much to appreciate and admire about Eucalyptus cladocalyx.
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David Lindenmayer, Australian National University; Chris Taylor, Australian National University; Elle Bowd, Australian National University; Philip Zylstra, Curtin University
All the evidence – colonial accounts and records, First Peoples’ testimony and scientific data – points to the existence of widespread tall, dense forests 250 years ago.
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David Fechner, Griffith University; Bettina Grün, Vienna University of Economics and Business; Sara Dolnicar, The University of Queensland
When diners were asked why they don’t order plant-based meat dishes, it turns out they have many different reasons.
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Vernon Rive, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
The recent climate case win in the European Court of Human Rights by a group of older Swiss women has real implications for a number of current cases before New Zealand courts.
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Books + Ideas
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Yves Rees, La Trobe University
Anzac events in the US were once upbeat affairs, with New York’s 1942 Anzac Day dinner attracting the rich and famous. The mood is more sombre today.
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Tony Birch, The University of Melbourne
With all the talk of “truth-telling” in Australia, some of it worthwhile and some clichéd, Kim Scott’s writing provides an invaluable entry point to a meaningful dialogue.
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