Anthony Albanese has been criticized for spending his early years growing up in public housing after it was revealed he bought a $4.3 million waterfront mansion.
It was announced on Tuesday that the Prime Minister is the new owner of a five-bedroom home in Copacabana, just south of Avoca on the NSW central coast.
Mr Albanese will share the $4.3 million clifftop home with his fiancée Jodie Haydon, whose ‘Coastie’ family has lived in the area for generations.
The Prime Minister was quizzed on whether he thought his expensive new purchase “looked good” during the country’s cost of living crisis, which is largely due to staggering property prices, high interest rates and skyrocketing rents.
Mr Albanese acknowledged that he had a “good income” as Prime Minister, but stressed that he had not always been so lucky.
“I also know what it’s like to struggle,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
‘My mother lived all her 65 years in the only public housing (apartment) in which she was born.
“I know what it’s like and that’s why I want to help all Australians into a home, whether it’s public housing, private rental housing, or homeownership.”
Mr Albanese will share the $4.3 million clifftop home with his fiancée Jodie Haydon, whose ‘Coastie’ family has lived in the area for generations (the couple are pictured together)
But his attempts to portray himself as a man of the people provided little ice for Sky News presenter Peta Credlin, who accused Mr Albanese of being “tone deaf”.
“Albo has now lived in that housing commission house (which he often talks about) longer than he has ever lived in it,” she wrote on social media.
“And frankly, the people who are struggling right now are tired of the way he’s using this story to show empathy when what matters is what he does in the biggest job in the country.”
‘Show people empathy NOW Prime Minister – when you have the means to actually help them, instead of chasing them again and again, as he will do with negative gearing.’
The Sky News presenter further accused him of ‘never really being up to the job’ and claimed he had ‘just been living in a left-wing bubble’.
Ms Credlin’s followers were quick to agree with her.
“He always plays the ‘housing committee’ card!” wrote one. ‘The sooner he’s gone, the better. Our country needs a leader.”
Another said they were “tired of hearing about his lavish spending.”
“It’s a complete joke from the guy who went on about living with a single mother!” they seethed.
The Prime Minister is the proud new owner of the five-person home in Copacabana, on the NSW central coast
The house is located right on top of the cliff on a plot of land of 790 m² and is within walking distance of the beach
“He’s so far removed from the real world it’s sad.”
One suggested that this was the way ‘the socialist elite works’.
“Liberals are now the workers’ party,” they claimed.
Mr Albanese said the beachfront property was not an indication of early retirement as he planned to remain in his current job “for a very long period of time”.
The clifftop house sits on a 790 sqm plot of land and is a short walk from the beach, with ocean views from almost every room in the house.
Mr. Albanese grew up in public housing and now has an impressive real estate portfolio.
His other properties include a three-bedroom townhouse in Dulwich Hill and a Federation House in Marrickville.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton was in no position to summon the Prime Minister as he was out of touch as he himself had a property portfolio that was appreciated for $4.5 million by the Daily Mail in 2022.
“They are clearly planning for the next phase of life, post-politics, and I wish them the best of luck in that,” Dutton said.
‘It’s the homeowners in Australia that I worry about – people who can’t pay their mortgage.
One observer said of Mr Albanese’s purchase online: ‘I don’t begrudge anyone who can afford to buy a house worth that much; what I do begrudge is the same person trying to tell the general population that he represents that he understands the pressure we are putting under. are under’.
“Nice to know he’s just a regular fighter,” another joked.
“Labor politicians are simply too rich and distant to understand the daily struggles of real Australians,” said a third.
‘It’s his money. He earned it legally and can do whatever he wants with it, just like the rest of us. This is still a free country,” said another.