AS THE government lays the groundwork for a major housing affordability package in next month’s federal budget, one picture shows why it may all be for nothing.

Posted to reddit by user JonoColwell, the photo shows an ad at Sydney’s Town Hall station for a property expo later this month — written in English and Chinese.

The 2017 Australian Property Expo, hosted by Chinese media group FirstMedia, is billed as “Australia’s best and largest property trade show” and will feature “more than 100+ exhibitors, 5800 square meters, and 8000+ new affordable homes”.

“Something tells me they aren’t catering to the first home buyers crowd,” wrote reddit user PBandJthyme.

Sammybeta wrote: “That’s why I believe something should be done with foreign investors. Something like Vancouver’s foreign investors tax. But Lendlease and CBA might be the first ones to oppose this idea.”

User Varanos described the current investment rules as legitimised “theft” of homes from Australians. “I cannot buy a house in China ... but for some reason both Australians and Chinese can compete for housing in Australia,” they wrote.

Turd_rock wrote: “I know I’m beating a dead horse here and stating the obvious, but this will continue to happen only as long as the government allows it to happen. So often you hear of the ‘bloody Chinese buying our property’ when it really should be the ‘bloody government allowing the Chinese to buy our property’.”

But other users described the discussion as “racist”.

“If you were alive in the 1990s, everything was ‘being bought by the Japanese invasion’,” wrote asdf2602. “This is, to me as an oldie, almost word for word what was happening back then. Panic, borderline (if not overt) racism, panic and allegations of fraud and selling our land, claims of ‘but they don’t let us do it’ and pricing everyone out of the market.”

Laser45 described the “anti-Chinese hysteria” as “crazy”. “All Sydney needs to do is allow more high-rise development in the inner city,” they wrote.

“Just walk up William Street to the cross and see how under-utilised all that land is. Put up 50-storey apartment blocks all the way. Pump in supply, and prices will start to fall, and the Chinese money will flee.

“Chinese money follows housing bubbles, as the returns look so amazing. Today we have the same crowd whining about house prices and talking about evil developers. Stop blocking development, if we add enough CBD apartments, the housing bubble will subside.”

It comes as Treasurer Scott Morrison on Monday delivered a speech to the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute in Melbourne laying the groundwork for a broadbased housing affordability package in next month’s budget.

The package will likely include a scheme for first-home buyers to access their superannuation, tax breaks for downsizing retirees, rental support, and measures to improve supply by unlocking federal land for housing.

“One budget will not turn these issues around in isolation, but we can make a start,” Mr Morrison said. “There are no single or easy solutions and the payback is achieved in some cases over a generation — not an electoral or budget cycle.

“Previous governments have avoided dealing with these issues for fear of raising and disappointing expectations ... Others have sought to oversimplify the issue by promising Australians they would all be able to buy the house they wanted at the price they can afford by changing one tax.

“It’s not only wrong and dangerous policy, it’s cynical and cruel.”

According to The Australian, the role of foreign property investmen­t is also under review, with the possibility of stamp duty for all foreign property purchases.

Late last month, figures released by the NSW and Victorian state governments under Freedom of Information showed for the first time the massive role of foreign buyers in Australian property.

Despite regular claims to the contrary, the figures showed the level of foreign investor activity in the housing market had been a significant driver of price growth.

According to Credit Suisse analysts Hasan Tevfik and Peter Liu, who requested the information, tax data implied foreigners were purchasing property at an annualised rate of $4.9 billion in NSW and $3.1 billion in Victoria.

“Foreign demand for housing in NSW is currently running at an annualised rate of $4.9 billion and is the equivalent of 25 per cent of new supply,” they wrote in a report, published on Business Insider. “We think this is extraordinary given that current supply is nearing peak cycle. In Victoria foreign buyers are hoovering up 16 per cent of new supply.

“When we talk about foreign buyers we are really talking about Chinese buyers. The Chinese have accounted for almost 80 per cent of foreign demand in NSW. The second biggest group, the Indonesians, account for just 1.7 per cent of foreign demand.”

The analysts added that it was clear foreigners had been able to settle on their Australian properties more recently “despite the numerous impediments of capital controls and the lack of lending by Aussie banks”. “There is little evidence so far to suggest the flows have stopped,” they wrote.

That’s despite recent reports in The Australian that “almost 80 per cent” of Chinese buyers were not able to settle on their off-the-plan apartments, with some forced to sell at a 30 per cent loss. Late last year, Australia’s biggest apartment builder, Meriton founder Harry Triguboff, warned of a looming crisis among Chinese buyers.

The latest figures from research firm CoreLogic showed dwelling values across the capital cities last month increased at their fastest annual rate since May 2010, while Sydney values rose at their fastest annual pace since November 2002.

In the past 12 months, prices across the capital cities have increased by 12.9 per cent, with Sydney prices skyrocketing by 18.9 per cent and Melbourne close behind at 15.9 per cent. Only Darwin and Perth have gone backwards, declining 4.4 per cent and 4.7 per cent respectively.

Since January 2009, post-GFC Sydney prices have increased by 109.2 per cent, and Melbourne by 92.4 per cent, according to CoreLogic.

frank.chung@news.com.au