Academic Calls for Right to Housing as Young Australians Struggle to Buy a Home

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers addresses the National Press Club in The Great Hall in Canberra, Australia on May 13, 2026. Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty ImagesFor generations, the Australian dream followed a familiar script: leave home, find work, buy a house, and raise a family.But as housing costs surge that pathway is now more the exception rather than the rule.