Businessman Mark Bouris has launched a fierce attack on the Federal Government’s Budget changes to negative gearing and Capital Gains Tax (CGT), arguing the reforms will damage the traditional Australian pathway to wealth creation through property ownership.
The founder of Wizard Home Loans said the government’s justification of improving “intergenerational equity” was misguided, claiming the changes would instead make it harder for younger Australians to enter the property market.
“This intergenerational equity is a whole heap of crap,” Bouris said.
Under the new measures, tax benefits linked to negative gearing and CGT concessions will largely apply only to newly built properties, a move the government says is designed to improve housing supply and affordability.
However, Bouris argued the policy would simply increase demand for new homes and push prices higher.
“Every time government gets in to try and do something to get people to buy real estate … all it does is increase the price of real estate,” he said.
Bouris said the reforms unfairly target Australians who have spent years building wealth through property investment, including migrant families who historically viewed real estate as their main pathway to financial security.
“Migrant families like my family, they didn’t have the opportunity to go to university, have professional jobs. The only way they can actually build wealth is through property,” he said.
The prominent businessman also criticised rising taxes more broadly and suggested alternative measures to assist younger Australians, including tax deductions for rent and lower income tax rates for people under 40.
“I didn’t sleep because I’ve been laying in bed all night thinking about it. It’s a bunch of crap,” Bouris said.
He further argued Australia should instead follow lower-tax economic models adopted in countries such as the United States, Singapore and Dubai to encourage investment and business growth.
Source: The Daily Telegraph
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