Building approvals for new homes in Australia have fallen significantly, raising alarm bells for the nation’s housing targets.
According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), total new home building approvals dropped 6.1 per cent in August.
While detached house approvals rose slightly by 0.6 per cent to a two-year high, this gain was overshadowed by a sharp 17.5 per cent decline in approvals for higher density homes.
Master Builders Chief Economist Shane Garrett said the current rate of approvals would lead to a significant shortfall in new homes.
“Over the past year, a total of 166,230 new homes have been approved across Australia,” Mr Garrett said.
“If we remain stuck at this rate of new home building over the lifetime of the National Housing Accord, only about 832,000 new homes will get delivered.
“This would represent a shortfall of over 365,000 homes relative to the 1.2 million new home target set by all levels of government for the Accord.”
Master Builders Australia (MBA) Chief Executive Denita Wawn said high-density housing is important in addressing the housing crisis.
“If we are to bring about a quick end to the housing crisis, we need a strong and consistent supply of high-density housing to the market,” she said.
Property Council Group Executive Policy and Advocacy Matthew Kandelaars said the current environment is challenging for apartment development.
“The reality is that it has never been more difficult and costly to get apartments out of the ground,” Mr Kandelaars said.
“Apartment-killer taxes and planning systems continue to stall housing supply at a time when we can least afford it.”
Mr Kandelaars said that passing build-to-rent legislation could help address the shortfall.
“One of the quickest solutions is for Parliament to pass compromise build-to-rent legislation backed by the Property Council, Community Housing Industry Association and National Shelter, that can unlock 105,000 new apartments by 2034, with 10 per cent affordable,” he said.
“We need to increase the number of homes approved and ensure a strong pipeline of apartment supply, to drive towards our housing targets at scale.”
