Factors shaping the dynamics of housing affordability in Australia 2001-11

The models presented in this chapter yield some important findings that are largely in line with Wood and Ong's (2009) earlier findings. However, the current models extend over a longer timeframe and thus uncover some interesting new insights. The models of first spells in unaffordable housing show that most Australians in housing affordability stress escape within a relatively short period of time, though there is evidence of negative duration dependence. Thus, those who fail to exit unaffordable housing quickly find that their chances of escaping housing affordability stress decline sharply as spells lengthen. Mortgagors find it more difficult to manoeuvre out of unaffordable housing than private renters, because the high transaction costs they face impede moves that could ease housing stress. Self- or non-employment also diminish the prospects of evading unaffordable housing circumstances. Sole parents with young dependent children are particularly vulnerable to extended periods in housing affordability stress, as are ethnic groups from non-Englishspeaking backgrounds. While the study timeframe extends across the GFC and post-GFC years, we do not detect a statistically significant impact. Australians in unaffordable housing were perhaps unable to take advantage of lower interest rates and the slowdown in housing markets during the GFC, because it was accompanied by a parallel decline in labour markets, and thus job security. Area-based socio-economic status, as proxied by SEIFA deciles, appears to have a negligible impact on the odds of escaping unaffordable housing. The models of survival in affordable housing confirm that the majority of Australians in affordable housing can expect to sustain it. Furthermore, the models uncover a protective effect as spells in affordable housing lengthen. However, ethnic groups from a non-Englishspeaking background and sole parents with young children are once again more vulnerable, as are self-employed or unwaged persons. Here, job security also becomes important; the odds of surviving in affordable housing is reduced if one is on a part-time fixed-term contract or casual contract. Macro-economic conditions also matter. We find that the chances of sustaining affordable housing have fallen since the GFC

Wellbeing at the edges of ownership

The test of a well-functioning housing system is the wellbeing of its occupants. It may therefore seem encouraging that in jurisdictions dominated by mortgage-backed home ownership, owner-occupiers traditionally report better physical and mental health than renters. During the 2000s, however, in an era of financial crisis, wellbeing at the edges of ownership came under strain. Using data from two national panel surveys – the survey of Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia, and the British Household Panel Survey (with its successor, Understanding Society) – we track the wellbeing of households who sustained one or more spells of home ownership in the decade to 2010. We estimate log-log regression models of mental wellbeing for each country, documenting (with an appropriate range of controls) the effects of both tenure transitions (between ownership and renting) and some associated financial transactions (anchored on mortgage debt). We find: a wellbeing premium associated with outright ownership and a debt-effect among mortgagors; a wellbeing deficit among those who drop out of owner-occupation, with partial recovery where exit is enduring; and for leavers especially, a wellbeing cost to equity borrowing. Cross-national differences have an institutional explanation, but similarities relating to the character and regulation of mortgage markets are more striking.This work was supported by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) under grant number 53011. The HILDA project was funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services (DSS)

The relationship between intergenerational transfers, housing and economic outcomes

As house prices in Australia have increased, concern has been expressed about the ability of young Australians to attain home ownership. In August 2014, for example, the proportion of all mortgage financed dwelling transactions that were purchased by first home buyers was approximately 11.8 per cent, the lowest share since statistics began being collected in the early 1990s. Anecdotal evidence suggests that one means by which home ownership is facilitated is through intergenerational transfers from parents to their children. While International evidence indicates that home ownership is positively associated with inter vivos transfers and bequests, there is little Australian evidence about this relationship. This research addresses three distinct but related questions around intergenerational transfers (inter vivos gifts and bequests), housing outcomes, and related economic outcomes. 1. What is the magnitude and nature of bequests and what role do they play in facilitating home ownership, changes in housing consumption or assisting home-buying households into outright home ownership? 2. What is the nature of inter vivos (financial and in-kind) transfers from older Australians to their children and what role do they play in facilitating sustainable housing outcomes? 3. What are the implications of intergenerational transfers for inequality and what are the likely consequences over time? The attainment of home ownership has significance beyond the strong ethos associated with it in the Australian social context. Home ownership has traditionally represented an important vehicle for accumulating savings and wealth. Moreover, the tax and transfer system has features that encourage individuals and households to accumulate housing wealth. Over time, if younger Australians were to be excluded from the housing market; there could be important implications for the accumulation of wealth and, in turn, impact on the sustainability of tax and transfer programs. More generally, inequalities in the generation and distribution of wealth may arise if some groups are systemically excluded from housing markets. If intergenerational transfers are important for housing careers this has important implications on a number of economic, social and policy dimensions. First, intergenerational transfers may be confined to households that are relatively wealthy. Transfers will then have the potential to exacerbate existing inequalities over time. In addition, a well-defined tax system generally attempts to achieve vertical equity, a goal that is achieved when those who have a higher capacity to pay contribute more in the form of higher taxes. If intergenerational transfers are an important means to accumulate wealth, their tax treatment becomes an important question. Existing literature that examines the relationship between intergenerational transfers and housing outcomes offer mixed evidence. It is important to emphasise that the evidence is largely international in nature and reflects the institutional and social context in which transfers occurs. Hence, the findings are not necessarily directly relevant to the Australian context. Notwithstanding this, it is clear that across many countries parents make transfers to their children on a regular basis. In the United States, there is evidence that such transfers are often tied to home ownership decisions. In the case of Europe, the evidence is more mixed. While some research indicates a close relationship between intergenerational transfers and housing outcomes in Italy, for example, the evidence is less compelling in some Nordic countries such as Denmark. For Australia, there is only limited evidence available on how intergenerational transfers are associated with housing outcomes. One study, for example, found that around 5.5 per cent of individuals report receiving assistance to purchase a home in the previous 10 years. The framework in this research is economic in nature. While somewhat stylised, the methodology facilitates the analysis of behaviours across a range of dimensions. For example, intergenerational transfers may influence both the quantity and timing of home ownership along with related behaviours such as savings. The economic approach provides a structured way to analysing these and related outcomes. The empirical analysis uses the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) dataset, a longitudinal database that contains a rich array of individual and household level information on key demographic, labour market and housing market measures; it also provides information on individuals' family background, such as parents' labour market and occupational status and parents' educational attainment. A key benefit of the HILDA data is that its longitudinal nature allows the use of well-developed statistical methods to empirically model the relationships of interest in a robust manner. Descriptive analysis indicates that, on average, around 6 per cent of HILDA respondents reported receiving a parental gift/transfer in any given year between 2002-12, while approximately 1.4 per cent reported receiving a bequest. However, the magnitude of bequests are substantially larger: over the same period, the mean amount of bequests received was in the order of $80 000 while the amount of gifts/transfers amounted to around$9000. Tenure choice regression models were estimated via a probit model to determine the role that transfers play in influencing tenure choice. Preliminary results suggest that there is evidence that inter vivos transfers and bequests are important factors affecting tenure outcomes (home ownership with and without a mortgage). Probit regression estimates indicate that receipt of bequests in the previous 10 years increased the likelihood that individuals attained home ownership in wave 10-either with or without a mortgage or outright home ownership-by 2-4 percentage points. Preliminary findings also indicate that the chances of being observed in home ownership are positively related to the size of the bequest received. An average bequest of $85 000, for instance, is expected to increase the likelihood of being observed in home ownership by around 3.4 percentage points. On the other hand, model specifications that include the receipt of gifts or the value of gifts seem to be a less important influence on tenure status in wave 10. In general, there is no evidence that the receipt of a gift per se is associated with a higher probability that the individual is observed in home ownership. This may be due to the low value of gifts that are not intended to facilitate beneficiaries' entry into home ownership. There is, however, evidence of positive associations between the amount of gifts received and advancement in tenure status. Subsequent analysis will more rigorously analyse the data by exploiting the panel nature of HILDA by estimating models capturing the dynamic nature of transitions into home ownership. Greater comparability between transfer recipients and non-recipients can be achieved by using quasi-experimental techniques like the propensity score estimator, which deals with the nonrandom distribution of parental transfers. In addition, the role of transfers (inter vivos gifts and bequests) on the distribution of wealth in Australia will be analysed. The analysis seeks to inform policies designed to ensure the sustainability of housing outcomes over the life-cycle as individuals seek to enter home ownership for the first time or respond to other life-events that impact on tenure status. In addition, the analysis will provide insight into tax and transfer policies designed to facilitate home ownership and enhance social welfare

The structural drivers of homelessness in Australia 2001-11

This second and final report, from a project addressing this broad question, builds on our earlier analysis of the spatial dynamics of homelessness from 2001 to 2011. It examines the role of housing and labour markets, household income, income inequality, climate and demographic profiles in shaping the spatial distribution of homelessness across Australia. Interest in the role of structural versus individual level drivers of homelessness has been longstanding in the homelessness research and policy fields. Some have argued that homelessness is caused by structural factors such as weak labour markets and tight housing markets (Neale 1997), while others have emphasised individual factors such as mental illness, a history of contact with institutions, or poor decision-making as the key causes (Neale 1997). More recently a loose consensus has emerged where homelessness is understood to be caused by the interaction of individual risk factors and adverse structural conditions (Fitzpatrick & Christian 2006; Lee et al. 2010; Pleace 2000; O'Flaherty 2004)

Quadrichambered ventricles

Double chambered is a term that has been used to describe the subdivision of a ventricle as a result of anomalous septum or muscle bundle. Subdivision of the left ventricular cavity is a rare cardiac anomaly compared to subdivision of the right ventricle. This case features a double chambered right ventricle and a rare double chambered left ventricle at the same time. (Cardiol J 2010; 17, 3: 303–305

Biomethane Production as an Alternative Bioenergy Source from Codigesters Treating Municipal Sludge and Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Wastes

Energy recovery potential of a mesophilic co-digester treating OFMSW and primary sludge at an integrated biomethanization plant was investigated based on feasibility study results. Since landfilling is still the main solid waste disposal method in Turkey, land scarcity will become one of the most important obstacles. Restrictions for biodegradable waste disposal to sanitary landfills in EU Landfill Directive and uncontrolled long-term contamination with gas emissions and leachate necessitate alternative management strategies due to rapid increase in MSW production. Moreover, since energy contribution from renewable resources will be required more in the future with increasing oil prices and dwindling supplies of conventional energy sources, the significance of biogas as a renewable fuel has been increased in the last decade. Results indicated that almost 93% of annual total cost can be recovered if 100% renewable energy subsidy is implemented. Besides, considering the potential revenue when replacing transport fuels, about 26 heavy good vehicles or 549 cars may be powered per year by the biogas produced from the proposed biomethanization plant (PE = 100,000; XPS = 61 g TS/PE·day; XSS-OFMSW = 50 g TS/PE·day)

Life on the edge: A perspective on precarious home ownership in Australia and the UK

This paper focuses on two countries with debt-funded ownership-centred housing systems, Australia and the UK. Financially, there are similarities between these two societies, which have relatively ‘complete’, reasonably well-regulated mortgage markets, had limited exposure to the extremes of subprime, and have been pre-occupied with (and reasonably successful in) restoring ‘business as usual’ in housing and mortgage markets. Institutionally, however, the countries differ from each other, notably with respect to the size and function of the rented sectors. By modelling matched datasets from panel surveys in Australia and the UK, this paper considers how home-buying households in these financially similar, institutionally distinct, countries coped with the ups and downs of housing and mortgage markets in the first decade of the millennium. To address this, we focus on the edges of ownership: that once-stark boundary between owning and renting whose character is often taken for granted, yet which contains important signals about the functioning of housing systems, their link to the wider economy and the well-being of home occupiers. The analysis considers in hitherto unprecedented empirical detail how, why, when, for whom and in what way the edges of ownership proved precarious in the decade to 2010.This work was supported by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) under grant number 53011. The paper uses unit record data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) and Understanding Society. The HILDA project was initiated and is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services (DSS) and is managed by the Melbourne Institute of Applied and Economic and Social Research (MIAESR). The BHPS was originally collected by the ESRC Research Centre on Micro-social Change at the University of Essex and Understanding Society is collected by the Institute of Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex. The findings and views reported in this paper are those of the authors and should not be attributed to AHURI, DSS, MIAESR or the University of Essex

Internal avalanches in a pile of superconducting vortices

Using an array of miniature Hall probes, we monitored the spatiotemporal variation of the internal magnetic induction in a superconducting niobium sample during a slow sweep of external magnetic field. We found that a sizable fraction of the increase in the local vortex population occurs in abrupt jumps. The size distribution of these avalanches presents a power-law collapse on a limited range. In contrast, at low temperatures and low fields, huge avalanches with a typical size occur and the system does not display a well-defined macroscopic critical current.Comment: 5 pages including 5 figure