Fed: 24-34 year-olds finding home-buying tough - report

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Fed: 24-34 year-olds finding home-buying tough - report

CANBERRA, Feb 11 AAP - A growing number of young people find it tough to buy theirown home or secure a job, according to a new report.

The Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) report found growing numbersof people, aged 24 to 34, today faced significant inequalities in employment, housingand other opportunities compared to previous generations.

This was threatening to entrench long-term disadvantage across the life span of manyyoung adults, it said.

It also argued that growing numbers of young people faced increased disadvantage inaccessing secure and sustainable employment, housing and other opportunities, comparedto previous generations.

This inhibited the transition to independent adulthood and threatened to entrench disadvantageacross the life-course for many young people.

"Such uncertainty is in stark contrast to the stable, life-course trajectory of previousgenerations, which was characterised by linear transitions from school to work to familyformation and home ownership," the report said.

Co-author and former Labor deputy prime minister Brian Howe said part of the problemwas that many young people had a poor transition to work in Australia.

"We have the highest rate of part-time work and casualisation in the OECD - that particularlyaffects younger people," he told ABC radio.

"(And) quite low rates of school retention, among the lowest in the OECD."

Many of the consequences of these developments had been put to one side as if theywere not important, he said.

"Australia, in many ways, keeps patting itself on the back but it's not doing so wellwith young people and it's not doing so well with a lot of older people either, who areforced out of the workforce prematurely, often when they've still got quite significantfamily responsibilities."

AAP dep/cd/bwl

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