Questions raised over poll claiming Aussies ‘want home prices to fall’

Do homeowners really want prices to fall as we were led to believe after a recent poll?If you go to the actual Resolve Political Monitor question that triggered the headline about the 61 per cent who thought it was worthwhile, you won’t draw the same conclusion.It asked: “Many housing tax and home building subsidy measures are designed to reduce house prices. Regardless of your support or opposition to a particular tax or subsidy, do you support or oppose the objective of bringing house prices down?”Todd Sarris, from Hills District mortgage broker Spartan Partners, rightly describes the wording as “analytically incoherent”.“The problem is that the question bundles together fundamentally opposing policy instruments, assigns them a single objective, and then asks the public to provide a verdict on a premise that has already been framed for them,” Sarris says.MORE: Jackie O’s cunning $30m exit plan amid Kyle payoutA recent poll curiously claimed 61 per cent of Aussies want the value of their homes to decrease. Picture: Getty ImagesHe suggests placing two issues under the single banner of bringing down house prices in the poll ignores economic triggers and notes a subsidy reduces costs...