After evicting his tenant of four years, Anthony Albanese has finally listed his three-bedroom rental in Sydney’s inner west with hopes of selling it for $1.9m. He originally purchased the Dulwich Hill investment property for $1.175m in 2015. If the sale hits the asking price, our PM will pocket a tidy profit of more than $700,000 in less than a decade.
And, thanks to the capital gains tax incentive, half of his profit will be tax-free.
Well, good on Albo! We like a good housing story in Australia – especially when it’s tied to personal milestones, like Albanese pointing to his upcoming wedding.
But it’s hard to ignore the glaring divide between the political elite, who have the option to sell off investment properties, and everyday Australians struggling to secure a place to call home.
Over the years, Albanese has amassed a $4m property portfolio, renting out two Sydney homes, including a mortgage-free bungalow, while living rent-free at the prime minister’s official residence, the Lodge, in Canberra. His rise from public housing kid to local landlord, once seen as an inspiring tale of upward mobility, now underscores a stark generational divide.
For a prime minister who built his career on advocating for the working class, his trajectory is a far cry from the experience of younger Australians, many of whom are locked out of the housing market entirely. In 1990, Albanese bought his first home at age 26 – a $146,000 semi in Marrickville – but this kind of opportunity is out of reach for many young Australians today. According to recent reports, younger generations are three times less likely to own a home than adults in the early 1990s, with many resigning themselves to a life of renting – or worse, facing the risk of homelessness. Rising rents, stagnant wages and the persistent lack of affordable housing have made homeownership an unattainable dream.
But Albanese’s decision to sell his investment property might seem routine in Canberra circles, where multiple homes and investment properties are the norm. Federal politicians, on average, own two properties per person. In fact, 86% of them own at least one residential property, compared to just 67% of Australians, according to 2021 census data. They are also twice as likely as the average taxpayer to own an investment property.
Meanwhile, housing stress has become a defining feature of the current political landscape. Clare O’Neil, the housing and homelessness minister, has spoken about Labor’s ambitious target of building 1.2m new homes and investing $32bn in housing. Yet, despite these efforts, housing inaccessibility haunts a sizeable proportion of the Australian population. In 2024, two out of five low-income renters face the brink of homelessness despite commonwealth rent assistance. According to the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council, the housing crisis is expected to worsen, with a significant supply shortfall on the horizon.
Albanese’s property sale, coming on the heels of his government’s $6.2bn housing plan to address shortages and expand social housing, feels like a contradiction to some, but it is symbolic of a deeper issue: the intergenerational wealth divide, which is at its most stark when it comes to property. Older generations, buoyed by higher asset values and financial security, continue to enjoy luxuries like travel and dining out, while younger Australians cut back on essentials such as food, utilities and fuel. This growing chasm leaves younger Australians with little hope of matching the financial stability of their predecessors, particularly when it comes to home ownership.
Albanese is of course entitled to make property decisions based on his personal circumstances, but it raises broader questions about whether the political class truly understands the housing struggles of ordinary Australians. In a country grappling with chronic housing stress, the disparity between those who can buy and sell properties at will and those for whom housing is a source of constant anxiety has never been clearer.
Dr Intifar Chowdhury is a youth researcher and a lecturer in government at Flinders University
