Australia’s Reserve Bank Governor, Michele Bullock, has identified stamp duty as one of the greatest structural barriers preventing the nation from solving its housing and labour market challenges.
Speaking at the Daily Telegraph’s Future Sydney Bradfield Oration on Friday, Bullock described stamp duty as a “barrier for dynamism in the economy,” arguing that it discourages both downsizing and relocation for work.
During a Q&A following her address at the Sydney Opera House, the Governor said the tax discourages older homeowners from moving to smaller properties, which could free up larger homes for families. “It’s not only a barrier to downsizing,” she added. “It’s a barrier to people moving to find jobs – a barrier to economic mobility.”
According to a 2024 e61 Institute study, nearly a quarter of potential downsizers were deterred from selling their homes because of stamp duty costs.
Bullock noted that while the RBA does not set housing policy, “governments must consider whether taxes and policies are locking people in place instead of letting them move.”
Her remarks reignited debate over housing reform, particularly in New South Wales, where the Perrottet government had introduced a transition from one-off stamp duty payments to annual land taxes – a reform later scrapped by the Minns Labor government in 2023. Victoria, meanwhile, continues to offer limited stamp duty concessions for older Australians.
The Governor also raised alarms over another pressing threat: quantum computing. Bullock warned that rapid advances in quantum technology could soon enable criminals to “break current encryption standards” and steal money from digital payment systems. “We need to move now to quantum-safe encryption,” she said.
She explained that what currently takes 200 years to decrypt could soon be done “in minutes” by a quantum computer. “Financial institutions must stay ahead of this threat,” Bullock said, adding that she believed banks understood the risks.
When asked about scams, Bullock shared a personal story: “My husband recently got a message that looked exactly like it was from NAB – but it wasn’t. It was a spoof. We checked and found out it was fake. You have to be extremely careful.”
She urged telecommunications companies and social media platforms to take greater responsibility for shutting down fake messages and scam accounts, saying that combating digital fraud “is not just up to the banks.”
Bullock concluded by emphasizing that ensuring the availability of skilled labour and training new tradespeople is essential if Australia is to meet its housing and infrastructure needs — and that tax reform, technological vigilance, and workforce development must go hand in hand.
