In Australia we have "stamp duty" as part of the cost of sell-buy, when you add on agents commission etc it can easily cost over 10% in fees and charges to move next door. Or more to the point, closer to work or aging parents etc.
With capital city houses easy running into 1-2 mill, that's a lot of money and is very retrograde and an impact to productivity due to longer commutes etc.
This is one of the key limiting factors to mobility caused by ownership.
Add in the family home is exempt capital gains taxes, the whole market is out of whack.
The US has similar capital gains exclusions and roll overs on primary residences. The transfer (“stamp”) taxes of 1-4% of the sale aren’t directly comparable. However most US locations do have property value taxes of 1-3% per year. Closer to the proposed land value tax scheme that was recommended a few years back. The other huge difference is where property depreciation and losses (negative gearing) can offset other income streams indefinitely. That doesn’t work in the us (and most economists are against mortgage tax deductions in general).
With capital city houses easy running into 1-2 mill, that's a lot of money and is very retrograde and an impact to productivity due to longer commutes etc.
This is one of the key limiting factors to mobility caused by ownership.
Add in the family home is exempt capital gains taxes, the whole market is out of whack.