Joe Hockey has come under fire after advising first home owners to get a "good job" if they want to buy a house.
The treasurer made the comments while addressing media on foreign investment on Tuesday, saying loans were now "more affordable than ever".
"The starting point for a first home buyer is to get a good job that pays good money," he said.
"If you've got a good job and it pays good money and you have security in relation to that job, then you can go to the bank and you can borrow money and that’s readily affordable."
Greens leader Richard Di Natale said Mr Hockey was "completely out of touch".
Senator Di Natale described the treasurer’s comments as "let them eat cake sort of stuff".
"He's a man who is very disconnected from the ordinary concerns of people," he said.
Social media users have also hit back, labelling Mr Hockey out of touch and sending the hashtag #adviceforjoe trending.
Mr Hockey had been addressing media on foreign investment, stating that almost 200 cases of unlawful purchases of Australian houses by foreigners had been uncovered since the government started enforcing the law.
New, tighter rules are due to come into effect in December.
Asked if this would damage Australia as a foreign investment destination, Mr Hockey said: "None whatsoever."
"This is about the integrity of the current laws. We are applying penalties in the case of people who breach the laws," he said.
Under the new rules, foreign buyers and those who facilitate illegal property sales face new penalties including fines of more than $100,000 or up to three years' jail.
Foreign investors cannot buy existing properties, but are allowed to invest in new housing.
So far the Foreign Investment Review Board is investigating 195 cases, of which 40 were found thanks to community tip-offs and another 24 buyers voluntarily came forward.
The rest were discovered through an audit by the tax office.
A UK national could be the second to undergo a forced divestment after self-reporting his $700,000 West Australian property purchase.
It follows the forced sale of the $39 million Sydney mansion Villa de Mare illegally bought by a Chinese-controlled company.
Mr Hockey later confessed on 3AW radio in Melbourne that he had dobbed in one of his own neighbours, and while they did have approval to buy, it was made on "pretty spurious grounds".
That case is yet to resolved.
With AAP.
