Everybody’s Home is calling on politicians to stop amplifying misleading claims that changes to investor tax breaks will push up rents, warning that the scare campaign risks becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The national housing campaign said changes to negative gearing arrangements, which will not change for existing landlords, should not be used to justify higher rents. Repeated claims that rents will inevitably rise are creating a permission structure for landlords to charge renters more.
The campaign was responding to cherry-picked figures and quotes from the National Australia Bank and Ray White property, which were both walked back.
Everybody’s Home spokesperson Maiy Azize said: “Politicians should not be misleading landlords and renters about these reforms.
“Existing landlords shouldn’t use investor tax break reform as an excuse to put up the rent. But every time politicians repeat the claim that rents will rise, or it gets reported as an inevitable consequence of reform, it creates an expectation that renters can be charged more.
“Rents were rising long before these reforms. They rose while negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount were fully in place. Renters have been told rents must rise when interest rates go up, and when they go down. Now they are being told rents must rise because tax breaks are being wound back.
