THERE'S concern the price of land in regional Victoria could be adversely impacted by a proposed new state government tax.
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Property development advocacy group, the Urban Development Institute of Australia, has warned the state government's proposed tax on rezoning will have a disproportionately negative impact on regional cities like Bendigo, hurt housing affordability and strip revenue from regions.
UDIA Victoria chief executive officer Matthew Kandelaars, said the government's proposed rezoning tax - dubbed a "Windfall Gains Tax, is a 'blunt tool with major implications' for regional housing markets.
Across regional Victoria, UDIA modelling shows a rezoning tax will render many housing projects unviable, costing regional Victoria at least 2,700 new homes, 9,500 direct jobs and over $2.7 billion in lost economic output.
"This proposed new property tax will cost thousands of regional jobs and result in billions in lost economic activity, right when our regions need to ignite their COVID recovery," Mr Kandelaars said.
"The proposal will disproportionately hurt regional cities like Bendigo, with tax liabilities in the regions likely to be the equivalent of more than twice that of Melbourne.
"We're calling on regional Victoria's contributions to be capped at no more than 50 per cent of the metro Melbourne rate."
"The market's going to be the one that pays for it in the end," he said.
Mr Bowles cited the recent sale of a weatherboard property in Flora Hill, where his firm quoted a price range of approximately $450,000 but a price of more than $500,000 was achieved within days of going onto the market, as a typical example of how strong the market is.
Mr Kandelaars said UDIA Victoria was concerned about where the forecast $40 million in tax revenue each year will end up.
"This isn't a question of whether Bendigo remains affordable for the Melbourne tree-changer. It's the nurses, teachers and tradies who have grown up in Bendigo and dream of staying there who will be priced out of their own market."
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