With his hometown of Hobart having the least affordable rents in the country, independent MP Andrew Wilkie said it was time to reform taxes that unfairly benefited property investors.
"It is still the case that investment property owners and investors have an unfair advantage over people who are just wanting to put a roof over the head of themselves and their family," he said.
Mr Wilkie said it was not fair to say Labor lost the 2019 election due to its negative gearing and capital gains tax policies, arguing that the franking credits policy was largely to blame.
"With so many people in this country now experiencing or witness to the housing crisis, the argument could be won," he said.
He suggested grandfathering the reforms so they wouldn't affect existing properties to make the changes more palatable.
Mr Wilkie's remarks follow the release of the latest Rental Affordability Index that showed rents escalating faster than household incomes across the country.
Hobart is the least affordable city in which to rent a home, ahead of Greater Sydney, Greater Brisbane and Greater Perth.
"More and more regional households are struggling to pay their rent and key workers are unable to access housing, especially in the regional areas of Queensland, Tasmania, NSW and Western Australia," report lead author and SGS partner Emma Witte said.
This includes Lismore, in the northern rivers region of NSW, which has suffered multiple flooding events this year.
National Shelter CEO Emma Greenhalgh said governments needed to take action to help low-income Australians secure a roof over their heads, including boosting Commonwealth Rental Assistance and other government income supports such as JobSeeker.
Ms Greenhalgh also said a rental cap should be considered, as well as the removal of no-grounds evictions.
The homelessness organisation also wants to see 25,000 social and affordable homes delivered annually to make up the shortfall.
Mr Wilkie supported some of these measures and said stronger regulations on short-term holiday rentals was needed.
"(Short-term holiday accommodation) has gobbled up hundreds of houses that used to be for hundreds of people on a permanent basis," Mr Wilkie said, noting that the Hobart City Council and other councils around the country were trying to address the problem.
Brotherhood of St Laurence research director Professor Shelley Mallett said declining housing affordability is threatening the viability of essential services.
"Key workers in fields such as education and healthcare find it difficult to rent in communities they serve," she said in a statement.
"So to ensure longevity of vital services, there needs to be improved access to affordable housing for staff and policies in place such as caps to rent increases."
The Rental Affordability Index is issued once a year by SGS Economics, National Shelter, Brotherhood of St Laurence and Beyond Bank.
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