House prices fall slightly, media loses mind

Political reaction to the changes

Migration hasn't caused the housing crisis

Negative equity & the 5% deposit scheme

'Widow's tax'?

Final thoughts

Some in the media are treating it like the beginning of a housing apocalypse, but a slight drop in house prices shows that the government’s housing investor tax reforms are doing their job.

On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Matt Grudnoff joins Elinor discuss the positive impact of the government’s changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax, why migration hasn’t caused the housing crisis, and concerns about negative equity and grandfathering of the policies.

This discussion was recorded on Thursday 2 July 2026.

Host: Matt Grudnoff, Senior Economist, the Australia Institute // @mattgrudnoff

Host: Elinor Johnston-Leek, Senior Content Producer, the Australia Institute // @elinorjohnstonleek

Show notes:

No, rents won’t increase by $2,000 a year because of changes to negative gearing by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)

It may be time to calm the farm on falling house prices by Greg Jericho, The Point (June 2026)

The housing reforms are cooling investor demand and slowing the market. That's the point by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)

The CGT discount, not a lack of supply, is driving house prices up by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)

Theme music: Blue Dot Sessions

We’d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au. Subscribe to Dollars & Sense on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

Some in the media are treating it like the beginning of a housing apocalypse, but a slight drop in house prices shows that the government&rsquo;s housing investor tax reforms are doing their job.
On this episode of Dollars &amp; Sense, Matt Grudnoff joins Elinor discuss the positive impact of the government&rsquo;s changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax, why migration hasn&rsquo;t caused the housing crisis, and concerns about negative equity and grandfathering of the policies.
This discussion was recorded on Thursday 2 July 2026.
Host:&nbsp;Matt Grudnoff, Senior Economist, the Australia Institute // <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/mattgrudnoff.bsky.social">@mattgrudnoff</a>
Host:&nbsp;Elinor Johnston-Leek, Senior Content Producer, the Australia Institute // <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/elinorjohnstonleek.bsky.social">@elinorjohnstonleek</a>
Show notes:
<a href="https://thepoint.com.au/off-the-charts/260622-no-rents-wont-increase-by-2000-a-year-because-of-changes-to-negative-gearing">No, rents won&rsquo;t increase by $2,000 a year because of changes to negative gearing</a> by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)
<a href="https://thepoint.com.au/off-the-charts/260622-it-may-be-time-to-calm-the-farm-on-falling-house-prices">It may be time to calm the farm on falling house prices</a> by Greg Jericho, The Point (June 2026)
<a href="https://thepoint.com.au/opinions/260616-the-housing-reforms-are-cooling-investor-demand-and-slowing-the-market-thats-the-point">The housing reforms are cooling investor demand and slowing the market. That's the point</a> by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)
<a href="https://thepoint.com.au/off-the-charts/260417-the-cgt-discount-not-a-lack-of-supply-is-driving-house-prices-up">The CGT discount, not a lack of supply, is driving house prices up</a> by Matt Grudnoff, The Point (June 2026)
Theme music:&nbsp;Blue Dot Sessions
We&rsquo;d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to <a href="mailto:podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au">podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au</a>. Subscribe to&nbsp;Dollars&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;Sense&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/dollars-sense/id1717300562">Apple Podcasts</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5FWzwVKWUR2tZCbXSKuBE2?si=1c2f3558cc6d44ab">Spotify</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://pocketcasts.com/podcast/dollars-sense/9cc37d00-6a4f-013c-9f4c-0acc26574db2">Pocket Casts</a>&nbsp;or wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

Economic data can tell us a lot about what's happening the economy and society, but it's easy to get lost in data. Dollars and Sense dives into the latest economic figures to explain how they impact you and what they tell us about the state of the Australian economy, with host Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work and popular columnist of Grogonomics with Guardian Australia.

Economic data can tell us a lot about what's happening the economy and society, but it's easy to get lost in data. Dollars and Sense dives into the latest economic figures to explain how they impact you and what they tell us about the state of the Australian economy, with host Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and the Centre for Future Work and popular columnist of Grogonomics with Guardian Australia.

Dollars & Sense

Dollars & Sense demystifies the latest economic figures, how they impact you and what they can tell us about the economy, with host with Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and Centre for Future Work, and author of Guardian Australia's Grogonomics column.  

Dollars &amp; Sense demystifies the latest economic figures, how they impact you and what they can tell us about the economy, with host with Greg Jericho, Chief Economist at the Australia Institute and Centre for Future Work, and author of Guardian Australia's Grogonomics column.

Some in the media are treating it like the beginning of a housing apocalypse, but a slight drop in house prices shows that the government’s housing investor tax reforms are doing their job.