Think curbing overseas migration will end the housing crisis? It won’t – and we can’t afford to do it

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 12:10:04 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/think-curbing-overseas-migration-will-end-the-housing-crisis-it-wont-and-we-cant-afford-to-do-it-211120>

"With the nation feeling the pressures of a housing crisis, some believe the
Australian government needs to ease housing demand by limiting international
migration.

To others, this sentiment comes across as xenophobic. They dismiss it outright,
based on moral grounds. How can a nation of settlers, built on unceded
Indigenous land, contemplate the notion of closing its borders to new migrants?

Leaving the moral arguments aside, it is worth looking at the data to find out
if there is any merit to the idea of limiting housing demand by curbing
migration – as opposed to increasing housing supply to make housing more
affordable.

The evidence from pandemic-era data and longer-term migration and housing
trends provides little support for the idea that curbing migration is a
solution. And the future impacts on the economy and an ageing population would
be costly for Australia, as the latest Intergenerational Report reminds us."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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