Home prices are falling for the first time in more than three years. Is Labor's housing policy starting to work? And if prices come down, who wins and who loses? 

We unpack what's really driving the market, whether the budget's tax changes will make it easier to buy a home, what they mean for renters, and why Australia's housing affordability crisis can't be explained by immigration alone. 

Guests:

Matthew Bowes, Senior Associate, Grattan Institute

Maria Yanotti, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Tasmania

Referred to:

Housing market downturn deepens as demand headwinds build, Cotality, July 1, 2026

The housing crisis that Australia built, Brendan Coates, Grattan Institute, March 11, 2026

More homes, better cities: Letting more people live where they want, Brendan Coates, Joey Moloney, Matthew Bowes, Grattan Institute, November 5, 2025

Housing submarket spillovers and COVID-19: the increasing influence of Australia’s regional cities, María Yanotti et al, December 31, 2025

Housing Q&A, Diana Mousina, AMP, June 18, 2026

Statement 4: Tax reform for workers, businesses and future generations, Commonwealth Budget, May 2026

Now that the dust is beginning to settle, what has happened to Labor's tax reform? 

And what does the way the debate played out tell us about the limits to what governments can do in the future? 

We are reliving the 1930s, according to author Viktor Shvets. Is there a peaceful way out?

If Australian taxpayers were given the choice, would we be willing to pay for the services we need? 

The latest economic figures suggest we're not in a recession. But new ABS data shows our overall life satisfaction is in decline. So which numbers should we trust?

For decades, governments have spent billions in hidden tax concessions that largely favour the ultra-wealthy. How did they get there?

Would cutting tobacco tax weaken a dangerous black market - or reverse decades of progress in reducing smoking deaths?

This week Labor touched the third rail of Australian politics: wealth and tax. Can it survive the backlash?

What does the federal budget really do for Australia’s housing crisis? Peter Martin from The Economy, Stupid joins Anthony Burke from By Design to examine whether changes to tax settings will make it any easier to buy a home.

Peter Martin is an economist and the host of The Economy, Stupid, a weekly guide to the world of business, economics and finance. Listen to The Economy, Stupid here.

When RBA governor Michele Bullock announced the third consecutive interest rate rise this week, she acknowledged the real-world suffering that would result.

But just how much pain is too much? And is there a better way?