Why this single photo of an Australian suburb has sparked a huge debate about the future of our country

An aerial photo of an Australian suburb showing thousands of densely packed standalone homes has sparked a debate about the future of housing.

Located about 40km west of Sydney's CBD near Quakers Hill, The Ponds was established in 2007 and was previously farmland.

Today the suburb is home to 4,500 dwellings and an estimated population of about 12,000 residents.

However, Australians have criticised the density of the suburb after an aerial photograph circulated on social media, prompting thousands to weigh in.

'Each one of these is worth at least $1.2 million, 45km from the Sydney CBD,' one commenter wrote.

'How the hell does this get approved? And look at those dark roofs.

'Just wait until the kids grow up and each house has three to four cars that need street parking.' 

The median house price at The Ponds - north of Blacktown and the M7 motorway and west of Kellyville - is $1.548million, CoreLogic data showed.

This is even dearer than greater Sydney's $1.414million mid-point, with a couple needing to earn $238,000 between them to even get a bank loan to buy into this newly-established suburb.

Some commenters shared concerns about the lack of privacy due to the proximity of the houses.

'That looks awful. Packed in like sardines,' one wrote.

'If you sneeze out a side window, your neighbour will catch your cold. This picture makes me feel claustrophobic just looking at it.'

Another wrote: 'No backyards. No trees. Just greyness. How bloody depressing.

'To me living like that would be hell on earth.' 

The design of the home also raised safety concerns, especially in the event of a house fire.

'How is that even safe? If one catches fire, they are all at risk. I'd rather live in a tent in a bush than one of these McBoxes,' one person commented.

'One home catches fire, and the entire row burns down. Great design.'

Another said: 'It's going to be as hot as hell in summer, and it's going to be reliant on air conditioning. It's very poorly designed.'

Others said high immigration to Sydney fuelled the need for such high-density housing.

'Govt is making it easier by opening the floodgates to massive immigration!' a commenter wrote.

'This sad, depressing picture has no place in Australia where greed has crippled potential homeowners because migration has been encouraged to unsustainable levels.'

Before the development of The Ponds in 2007, the area was characterised by small red brick homes with huge sections and farms.

One of those homes remains today - a five-acre property in the heart of the suburb owned by the defiant Zammit family, who refused to sell despite receiving lucrative offers.

The land is worth $40 million-plus to local developers Bathla, which could build 40 new $1million homes in the space.

Developers are believed to have offered the family a multimillion-dollar sum to hand the land over so construction work on the estate can finally be completed.

'Every home was unique, and there was so much space - but not any more. It's just not the same,' Diane Zammit previously told Daily Mail Australia.

The median price for a home in The Ponds over the last 12 months stands at $1.5million, according to data from realestate.com.au.