EXTRACT
Housing raises fundamental questions of dignity and the right to shelter, the extent to which people should be able to profit from other people’s basic needs, and the accumulation of financial risk. Aotearoa New Zealand’s current affordability crisis results from systemic economic issues, driven by the dominant treatment of housing as an investment, not a public good. Taxation and financial regulation have created an environment where speculative investment is very profitable for property owners, the real estate sector, and banks. The thirty year boom in property investment has driven up housing and land prices almost continuously, undermining the economic security of a growing number of households.
SOURCE: Jenny McArthur. “Somewhere to live: Exploring solutions to the housing affordability crisis in Aotearoa New Zealand.” The Helen Clark Foundation, Feb 2020.
The Brotherhood of St Laurence acknowledges and recognises the Traditional Owners of the land upon which we live and work, and we pay our respects to their Elders both past and present.
Produced by the librarians at the Brotherhood of St Laurence in Melbourne, Australia
