The Prime Minister has called on state and local governments to drastically speed up building approvals, to help alleviate the housing crisis.
His appeal comes as it was revealed that the pace of new home construction has hit its lowest rate in more than a decade.
Concerns are emerging that delays in approvals and construction mean the Government will not hit its target of 1.2 million new homes being built in the next five years.
To do that 240,000 homes will need to be built every year – more than has ever been delivered in the past.
According to the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation Australia’s housing shortfall will reach at least 175,000 homes by 2027.
The Housing Industry Association says the number of new homes sold is down 18% year on year and the cost of building a home is still rising.
It says the average value of a detached home approval in the September quarter was $461,000 which is 11.5% higher than in 2022.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the proportion of privately funded housing development now makes up 98.3% of construction. Although it is expected more social housing will be delivered though the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, which intends to build 30,000 new social and affordable rental homes over five years and a further 10,000 affordable homes under the national housing accord scheme.
While demand for housing is high many building companies will still struggle to survive in 2024 with Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) figures showing 3046 construction-related companies collapsed in the year to December 3, which was 38% higher than the whole of 2022.
