With Australia's housing affordability debate growing ahead of next month's federal budget, the latest data shows members of Parliament own more than 60 properties in the ACT - almost all in Canberra's most expensive suburbs.
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Analysis by Fairfax Media shows of Australia's 225 federal politicians and their spouses, 18 declared ownership of properties in Kingston, where the median unit price is $507,500. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek and Social Services Minister Christian Porter are among the highest-profile local owners.
A further 12 MPs own properties in nearby Griffith, where the median unit price is $388,750, including Attorney-General George Brandis, Liberal defector Cory Bernardi and former minister Senator Eric Abetz.
With median prices of $574,000, 10 MPs declare properties in Canberra and Civic, including Queensland Coalition senator and property mogul Barry O'Sullivan, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann and Assistant Minister to the Treasurer Michael Sukkar.
Members of Parliament are required to declare property they or their spouses own, with most in the ACT units and townhouses used during parliamentary sitting periods or as investment vehicles. Many MPs charge taxpayers $273 a night to stay in declared properties during sitting weeks, with some renting spare rooms to party colleagues.
Three MPs own properties in the suburbs of Yarralumla and Turner, with two each in Red Hill, Forrest and O'Connor.
Veteran's Affairs Minister Dan Tehan and his wife declare properties in O'Connor, Turner and Queanbeyan. Liberal Ben Morton declares two properties in Scullin and Griffith, along with Labor frontbenchers Joel Fitzgibbon who owns properties in Red Hill and Yarralumla, and Brendan O'Connor who owns in Kingston and Griffith.
Queensland Labor senator Glenn Sterle declares two properties in Kingston, one residential and one as an investment.
By comparison, the ACT's four local MPs have unusually low property assets.
While nearly two-thirds of all federal MPs own more than one property, Canberra MP Gai Brodtmann, Fenner MP Andrew Leigh and Labor senator Katy Gallagher each declare one property. Liberal senator Zed Seselja's home is not declared on the register.
Ms Brodtmann lives in Yarralumla, Mr Leigh in Canberra and Senator Gallagher in Lyneham.
Senator Seselja lives in Macarthur. A spokeswoman confirmed the family home was in his wife Ros's name, while he declares being a guarantor on the property's mortgage.
According to the latest reports, federal MPs have about $370 million tied up in the national property market, an estimate based on their 561 declared properties. The list includes primary and secondary homes, investments, holiday homes, commercial buildings and vacant land.
Many more properties are hidden from public view through companies, trusts and self-managed super funds.
The Coalition's 105 MPs and their spouses own 315 properties, or 56 per cent of the total. Labor MPs declare 198, and minor party and independent MPs declare 48. The data doesn't include federal Parliament's two newest members, One Nation's Peter Georgiou and Family First's Lucy Gichuhi, who are yet to submit interests register forms.
Ms Gichuhi reportedly owns six residential properties, worth as much as $2 million.
When Fairfax Media asked some of Parliament's high rollers about their property portfolios last week, chief government whip Nola Marino instructed Coalition MPs not to answer questions. Ms Marino declares nine properties.
Mr Turnbull has sought to distance the government from speculation housing affordability would be a centrepiece of the budget, leading to accusations from Labor the Coalition was divided on the issue.
