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Affluenza Spreads via Media Hype


New Zealand is experiencing some of the highest living costs in the OECD . According to Investopedia, “the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is variously referred to as a think tank or monitoring group. Its stated goals include fostering economic development and cooperation; fighting poverty; and ensuring the environmental impact of growth and social development is always considered”.

So, given that NZ is a signed up member of this economic development group to fight poverty while minimising harm to the environment which supports all living things, why is housing becoming more unaffordable? In 2017 Oxfam released a report on the growing gap between the haves and have not’s and this now rings true in Aotearoa. The report points out that the global economy is designed to enable the wealthy to accumulate more wealth and avoid taxation. As reported by Stuff NZ, “28 per cent of all wealth made went to the richest 1 per cent of Kiwis in 2017. The 1.4 million poorest New Zealanders got just 1 per cent of that wealth”. 

It seems that money has become the new god to worship in many developed nations and our slice of heaven has become a more popular place for those with wealth to take cover from the maddening crowds. Now, you’re probably thinking, how does this fit with unaffordable housing in NZ ? Well, our government is hell bent on attracting them to invest to grow the economy and that’s just what they’re doing. As a result of all this investment from off shore, us poor average Kiwi’s are now at the bottom of the heap when it comes to finding a place to shack up. Don’t get me wrong, there are some that are benefiting massively from all the property investment hype. Real estate agencies are lapping it up with vim and vigour. Oneroof creates its own hype and publishes a continuous barrage of articles with titles such as:

1. CV slayer: Auckland home soars 67% above CV and sells for $1.3m
2. Auckland firm shifts staff to Gisborne - now it's all beaches and $300k homes
3. Sir Peter Jackson's $150m real estate empire
4. First-homebuyers are still finding a way into the market
5. He discovered NZ's top models, so what's his apartment like?

Oneroof Hypes up the real estate market using a range of PR tactics. Source: Oneroof Real Estate News

These are just a few of the “real estate news” items to be found on Oneroof’s website. Who is Oneroof? Well, I’m glad you asked. Oneroof is a subsidiary of NZME which is owned by Australian media giant Fairfax Media. It seems that foreign owned media companies are in on the deal of hyping up the property market which they quite likely have big investments in as well. The vicious cycle of greedy capitalism seeks to keep those with wealth in a position to create more wealth while the average jo scrapes the bottom of the barrel.

Affluenza is the term coined by writer Oliver James who points out that fixation on material possessions and money has lead to severe dept and depression for many who can’t acquire what the Joneses have. Mr James states that selfish capitalism feeds materialism, unrealistic ideals and increases consumerism in a bid to promote short term economic growth. Furthermore, mental illness results from the perfectionist competitive work culture which pervades society brought about by glossy advertising and slick marketing.

We are not immune to these influences and offshore media organisations have become the viral centre for this social sickness. The fourth estate which was seen as a watchdog for the ruling estates has in my opinion become corrupt. The forth estate seems more focused on growing wealth through real estate.

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