Andrew Gee (Calare, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Kennedy for his interjection. This bill represents an important part of the solution to this crisis, and it needs to be debated urgency because it can deliver immediate results and make thousands and thousands of new homes and units available to first home buyers and young families each year.

The bill proposes a two-year prohibition on the foreign purchase of homes in Australia. Boosting housing supply is going to take decades. A two-year ban on foreign property speculators buying Aussie homes would take pressure off the market straightaway. That's the aim of the bill. Noncitizens, non-permanent residents and foreign controlled companies would be included in this prohibition. It covers the purchase of residential property either directly or indirectly and alone or jointly. It does not apply if a non-Australian is purchasing property jointly with a spouse or de facto partner who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident.

The bill provides for penalties for breaching the prohibition of up to $250,000. This in itself is a substantial penalty. However, for wealthy offending foreign corporations, this may not be a large enough fine. Under the Crimes Act 1914, a penalty of five times this amount may be imposed upon an offending foreign corporate entity, which equates to $1.25 million. Importantly, the bill also provides for the Federal Court of Australia to order the disposal of foreign-held residential property that contravenes the prohibition in this bill.

Debating this bill is urgent because things are moving quickly in the property market. The latest available data we have on foreign investment in residential real estate covers the 12 months to June 2022. This period included the COVID-19 pandemic global lockdowns, which undoubtedly would have affected the number of homes bought by non-Australians, given that they couldn't travel here. In the years since June 2022, regularity has returned to the housing market, and we know the numbers are higher. In any case, the data reveals a real problem that this bill aims to help solve.

In the year to June 2022, 4,228 homes were bagged by foreign buyers. That's scarce housing stock that could have gone to 4,228 Australians desperate for a home to call their own and who are being crowded out of the market. More than 75 per cent of these properties sold for less than $1 million. The year before, in the 12 months to 2021, 83 per cent of the homes purchased by foreign buyers were under $1 million. This demonstrates that foreign buyers are snapping up entry-level homes. That's a shocker of a statistic for young families and first home buyers who are trying to get their start. In the five years to June 2022, almost 37,000 residential properties on our shores were snapped up by foreign buyers. That's a huge number of homes that could have been the first rung on the property ladder for Aussies.

But, since those figures were published, the activities of foreign property speculators have been ramping up big time. The National Australia Bank's recently released residential property survey found that the market share of foreign buyers in new Australian housing markets in October to December 2023 grew for the fifth straight quarter to a 6½-year high of 11 per cent. In New South Wales, foreign buyers had a 15 per cent market share in the fourth quarter and in Western Australia it was 14.2 per cent. The NAB says that this points to a near fivefold increase in market share from the COVID pandemic low of mid-2021. The NAB states that international agents are reporting an increase in inquiries of over 400 per cent. The NAB also went on to find that dwelling prices rose by 9.3 per cent across capital cities in 2023. That's a very significant increase. Action must be taken immediately.

This bill is not about turning our backs on the wider world; rather it's about making thousands more homes available to hardworking Australians. It's about helping Australian homebuyers, and especially first home buyers, finally get a foothold on the residential property ladder. It's about helping them get their shot at the great Australian dream. The measures outlined in this bill can be an important part of the solution to the housing affordability crisis, along with other policies. They can make a positive contribution and have a positive impact straightaway. It's simple: by pausing foreign buyers from the residential property market for two years, more housing would be available for Australians. It's urgent that we have this debate because, as I have said, this is a measure that can make a real difference quickly. It's much faster to implement this bill than to build tens of thousands of new homes to make up for those bought by foreign property investors. The immediate impact that this bill can have demonstrates why it is so important to bring it on for debate.

Constituents of the Calare electorate are frequently contacting me to indicate just how difficult it is to find an affordable place to purchase or rent in our area. The fact is, when demand increases in the city, speculators look to park their wealth in properties located in regional centres and thriving towns, causing regional house and rental prices to skyrocket. Allowing foreign buyers to snap up Aussie homes adds unnecessary heat to the housing market that so many are finding themselves locked out of. It's a vicious cycle. In these difficult economic times, we need to be putting the interests of Australians ahead of wealthy foreign property speculators. The bill would bring the goal of homeownership into reach for thousands more Australians each year by banning foreign buyers from snapping up homes on our shores. It's been modelled upon a similar piece of legislation that was passed into law by the Trudeau government in Canada. This month, Canada announced it would be extending its ban on foreign home purchases in Canada for an extra two years to 2027. They are not our only Commonwealth cousins to do so. New Zealand has a similar measure, as does Singapore.

It's not enough to just believe in the great Australian dream. It's not enough just to talk about that dream in this House. It's our role as members of parliament to empower Aussies to achieve it. I urge all members of this House to support this motion and bring this bill on for debate, on the double.

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