Students in danger
Why would both a government and an opposition look to dramatically reduce Australia’s fourth largest export industry? International students are big business for inner city Brisbane and if you’re a landlord or property owner in the area the current election threat to slice their number is likely to have a direct impact on you.
Generating revenue of $19 billion in 2009, a BRW Magazine report says Australia hosted 751,000 international students last year. Those who watch Brisbane’s CBD rental market closely will tell you much of our housing demand has been from this group. It’s no exaggeration to say that whole residential towers depend on students for survival. Take a walk down Albert Street yourself. And this isn’t a new trend.
Not to mention the food, travel, entertainment, retail and other industries that benefit. Many of these students are great spenders! Access Economics estimate that for every $1 on education they spend $1.90 elsewhere. Brisbane’s Lord Mayor says this is our city’s largest export service industry and Universities Australia’s CEO says a 50% drop in international students would cost us 60,000 jobs. But Labor’s Sustainable Population Minister says cuts in numbers are warranted and many use their student visas as a “pathway for permanent residency”. The LNP’s Tony Abbott says they’re the “largest contributor to net overseas migration”.
Politics and race aside this is big business for inner Brisbane and especially for property owners. Yes the trend to inner city living is strong but a big chunk of our demand is from international students, especially in the CBD itself. Drop them and we may see a big reduction in rents.
What do you think? We’d love to have your comments.
This is not just a matter of immigration policy, it goes to the heart of spending on tertiary institutions which has been drastically cut (in real terms) since the early 90s. In fact rolling back government funding to universities has been on-going since the mid eighties. But, during the Howard era, government cut one dollar from university budgets for every overseas dollar brought in. This has made our own universities far less appealing to overseas students than they once were. China is currently spending US 50 billion per year upgrading their tertiary sector so they won’t have to sent their students overseas. The 19 billion we earned in 2009 would, arguably, have been much greater had Howard not used this revenue to bankroll pre-election porkbarrelling in marginal seats. By drastically cutting university funding the liberals effectively killed the ‘goose that laid the golden egg’ … labor knows this but has been slow to remedy the situation (nevertheless they have been far more sensitive to the situation than the conservative parties). If you like I can give you a link to my 2006 paper on this :-).
I have just bought a rental property in Kelvin Grove. There are two Australian students and 3 overseas students living there. I think studying overseas gives young people a fantastic chance to travel and live in a different culture. The overseas students are dedicated and amazing young people. It opens our country to remarkable people and increases our own children’s learning experiences by having internationals at the University.
Absolutely Fiona!
Hi, I have a CBD apartment and haven’t had students in it since 2005, since then just single CBD office workers or professionals, so I guess I must have bucked the trend. Noise and dirt from construction are more of a threat to my tenants at present.