Industry funds aim more research against super for housing
Industry funds representative group, the Super Members Council (SMC) has stepped up its campaign against the use of superannuation for housing deposits using new research to claim it will simply hike house prices by between 7.4% and 10.3%.
The research as commissioned by the SMCA and conducted by University of South Australia specialist housing economist, Professor Chris Leishman.
It said Leishman’s study had examined thousands of published studies on housing market modelling and selected two well-established models using different mathematical approaches to analyse the complex economic forces that drive housing prices.
It was that approach which delivered the 7.4% to 10.3% forecast.
“The very close range of estimates despite using different data and methodologies for each means we are very confident in concluding the proposal would be inflationary,” Leishman said.
“It is an uncontroversial finding – if you add demand to an inelastic market, prices are going to rise, with the unintended consequence of making housing less affordable” he said.
SMC estimates that, based on the Leishman model, median house prices could rise by an average extra $123,000, in Sydney, $80,000 in Melbourne, in Brisbane by $92,000 and by around $84,000 in Perth and Adelaide.
The average home buyer would pay an additional $260 per fortnight in mortgage repayments, adding up to $200,000 more over the life of the loan.
The SMC also referenced evidence from New Zealand which it said found after that country introduced a super for house scheme, house prices took off – growing at twice the rate of those in Australia – and home ownership rates fell by 7 per centage points for Kiwis in their 30s, a key first home buyer demographic.
Super Members Council chief executive, Misha Schubert said a vast body of expert evidence was crystal clear that early withdrawals of super for house deposits would just push up house prices further and faster – pricing more Australians out of owning their own home.
“Raiding retirement savings for house deposits would just unleash a supercharged price hike in house prices, not create more new home buyers,” Schubert said.
I’m waiting for the day this super mob finds research saying it is better to move money out of their hands.
In my view, any opinion and or input from the SMC should be treated with great skepticism.
It’s an economically reckless policy, it’s not hard to find evidence of that fact.
Always remember any funds in an union fund are the property of the union fund, not the member. How dare the member want choice on what to do with their monies.