Depreciation may need looking at: Commission

The commission - formed last year as part of the National Party's support agreement with the ACT Party - released its first report, on housing affordability, this morning.

The 228-page report - which is only a draft - covers a wide range of topics affecting the housing sector.

Although broadly supportive of the changes the government has already made in the tax area, the commission says the removal of depreciation needs to be monitored.

Removal of depreciation "appears to have been based on an assessment that for buildings, ‘capital gains' which are not assessable, and outlays on repairs and maintenance, which are deductible, offset physical depreciation," the report says.