The government says it wants to make it easier for Australians to buy a home. Its latest expansion of the five per cent deposit scheme means almost anyone, regardless of income, can now buy a home with a fraction of the usual savings required for a deposit.

It is the boldest version yet of a policy first introduced under the Morrison government.

But behind the promise of affordability is a political calculation: there are far more votes to be won from rising house values than from cheaper homes.

Today, leading economist Saul Eslake on Labor’s home-buyer scheme, why similar policies have failed in the past, and what it would really take to fix the housing crisis.

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Guest: Economist Saul Eslake

Photo: AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

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