Asked whether Sydney’s property prices are out of reach for many, the treasurer responded: ‘If housing were unaffordable in Sydney, no one would be buying it’

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Treasurer Joe Hockey has urged first home buyers to get “a good job that pays good money” if they want to enter the property market.

When asked at a press conference on Tuesday if residential property in Australia’s biggest city was out of the reach of many, Hockey said: “If housing were unaffordable in Sydney, no one would be buying it.”

Sydney and parts of Melbourne are 'unequivocally' in a house price bubble Read more

“The starting point for first home buyers is to get a good job that pays good money,” he added.

The comments were slammed on social media, with many users criticising the treasurer for being simplistic and out of touch with the difficulties Generation Y faces in enter the property market.

Claire Reilly (@reillystyley) Mr Hockey, next time you're in hospital getting seen to by a nurse, are you going to insist that s/he gets a job that pays good money?

Opposition leader Bill Shorten was scathing of the treasurer’s comments.

“What planet is Joe Hockey living on?” Shorten asked. “This isn’t just another Joe Hockey gaffe; this is proof he just doesn’t get the pressures families are facing.”

Joe Hockey must be the only person in Australia who doesn’t think housing affordability is an issue. As far as he’s concerned, if Joe Hockey’s doing OK then everyone else is too,” Shorten said.

“How are Australians supposed to find the ‘good jobs that pay more’ when unemployment is at its highest levels in more than a decade under his government?”

Greens leader Richard Di Natale labelled the treasurer’s comments “fantasy land stuff” from a man charged with the “nation’s purse strings”.

“That’s right out there, that sort of language, that’s let them eat cake sort of stuff,” Di Natale told reporters in Melbourne. “Go and get a job that pays more money? We are just going to magic these jobs up out of thin air?”

Hockey continued to deny that parts of Australia were experiencing a housing bubble, saying that housing affordability would become easier as supply increased.

“I say again in relation to what is reasonably expensive entry costs for first home buyers into housing in Australia, the best response is to build more housing,” he said, adding that there is a greater role for both state and local governments in accelerating the building process.

The comments come just days after the treasury secretary, John Fraser, warned that parts of Sydney and Melbourne are experiencing a housing bubble, and the head of the financial systems inquiry, David Murray, said a sharp fall in property prices could be detrimental to the economy.



In August, Hockey came under fire for being out of touch after suggesting Australia’s “poorest people either don’t have cars or actually don’t drive very far in many cases”.

The treasurer admitted on Tuesday that measures to restore integrity in foreign investment would not result in a drop in residential prices.

Joe Hockey forces Chinese investor to sell $39m Sydney mansion Read more

The Foreign Investment Review Board is investigating nearly 200 cases of suspected unlawful purchases of property. Foreign investors can buy new property in Australia, but must seek approval before purchasing existing residential property. Temporary residents who buy property must sell it when they leave the country.

“I am not suggesting this is going to represent thousands and thousands of homes. But what it is going to do is provide reassurance that people are complying with the law when they engage in the purchase of a property,” Hockey said. “We welcome foreign investment in new real estate because it adds to the stock.”

A new set penalties for foreign investors who buy existing stock will come into play from 1 December. The government wants members to dob in suspicious foreign property owners via a new telephone hotline. Concerned citizens can call the hotline on 1800 050 377.

But Hockey warned against racially profiling investors.

“They may look like foreign buyers, but they’re not,” he said, pointing to the fact that some Chinese families have been in Australia longer than his own family.