The state of stamp duty for Australian housing

In 2020, COVID-19 mildly impacted Australian housing prices, but created volatility in transaction activity. These factors have drawn renewed scrutiny of stamp duty on residential property, and may have influenced some of the timely reform and discounting in stamp duties over the year.

What’s wrong with stamp duty? 

There is broad agreement among academics, economists and advocacy groups across the property industry that stamp duty is a less than optimal property tax. 

The main critique…