2021

Professor Peter Phibbs got a rousing retirement send off from his gig as director of the University of Sydney’s Henry Halloran Trust on Wednesday but he didn’t leave without a few piercing observations on housing and planning.

There aren't many of us who haven't dreamed of packing it all up, moving to the country, and setting up the family with more space, friendly neighbours and lots of fresh air. Now, thanks to flexible work arrangements, the pandemic's made that dream a possibility for a lot more people.

House prices in Australia are climbing at rates we’ve seldom seen. In all age groups, there is more renting and less home ownership than there used to be. Is housing supply part of the problem?

For all of the glitz and glamour of Hollywood moving to Byron Bay, lies a problem that is playing out across many parts of regional Australia: homelessness and housing affordability. While supply is the long term solution, what can be done now to people who are having their roofs over their head being sold from underneath them?

Glaeser and Gyourko G&G) famously argued that if the marginal cost of a square metre of housing lot land is less than the average cost, this is evidence of a price effect from “artificial” supply constraints. However, the economic assumptions behind G&G’s approach are implausible. This note explains why.

Professor Nicole Gurran spoke at the Australian Housing & Urban Research Institute webinar on the Inquiry she lead on Urban Productivity and Affordable Rental Housing Supply.

Professor Nicole Gurran discusses rental affordability on ABC Life Matters.

The third webinar of the Network for Research in Built Environment and Mental Health, led by the Matilda Centre and the Henry Halloran Trust (both University of Sydney).

Professor Peter Phibbs, after leading the Henry Halloran Trust since 2013, has stepped down from his role and has been succeeded by Professor Nicole Gurran, from the Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning.