Why Does Australia Have an Affordable Housing Problem and What Can Be Done About It?

Abstract As a result of economic trends in Australia over the past 25 years, a growing proportion of households have faced high housing costs in relation to their income because of a shortage of affordable housing, particularly in areas where there is ready access to well‐paid employment. Problems have been particularly severe for lower income renters. This article provides a proposal to address this shortage, based on encouraging institutional financing of affordable rental housing, suggests more controversial policies that might be needed to address underlying causes and identifies a number of reasons why so little progress has been made.