Realistically, what do you think is the solution to the housing crisis?
Don't link rates to house prices, so it's not a benefit for local governments to work with developers to push up prices.
Only allow residents of the country to purchase residential properties.
Stop using houses to generate wealth.
"Stop using houses to generate wealth."
So...ban capitalism? I can't control the market. If I buy a house for 100 and then can sell it for 400 years later, I'd be stupid not too.
Look at the housing markets in other countries, where they are affordable as a ratio to income.
A quick search suggests that Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Spain, or Finland are good examples.
Whereas Australia, New Zealand, Canada, or Singapore are at least twice the ratio.
If you set up the housing market to generate wealth, you screw your younger generations entering the housing market.
I'd argue that it's not "set up" that way in the US. I don't know about the other countries. The fact that most people make money off the sale of their houses is just supply and demand at work. I bought a house as a young-ish person, but the timing was such that I bought at the bottom of the market, and I'll be selling at the top. That's just luck and good timing. Nothing is set up that way.
I don't know the exact percentages, but I've heard that Scandanavia has the highest tax rates in the world. Admittedly, they get a lot of social services for their money and there's not much poverty, but pick your poison. You want high taxes or you want a free market w/o subsidised housing? You can't have it both ways.
The housing pricing isn't linked to the social services of the country, I just happened to link Western countries to make it relative.
Housing is an essential service. You just unlink it from wealth generation by not giving tax breaks for landlords and restricting it to residential purchases and countries' permanent residents if it will right itself.
If you consider your countries other essential services, you'll likely find it has restrictions on overseas ownership.