Maxwell Shifman’s Post

Good Afternoon LI! The article below highlights how far behind Brisbane is falling in terms of housing for it's ever-growing population. Housing is a major issue Brisbane (and Australia in general) is facing. According to the Government, Brisbane requires an additional 7,500 attached dwellings constructed each year to keep up with projected population growth. Between 2020 and 2023, we delivered less than 2,000 apartments each year. Even though we are due to expect more dwellings in 2024 (just under 3,000), we are still well and truly short of our required targets. The concerning figure is that this number is set to drop to less than 1,500 in 2025. This lack of supply will increase house prices and also result in tenants paying more in rent. This is highly concerning considering the stress that the general population is already experiencing with the cost of living crisis. Incentives need to be put into place to encourage more developers to build high density developments here in SEQ. Let me know your thoughts below. #Hays #Construction #Recruitment #CostOfLiving #Housing #Apartments

Last week, the Victorian Government released their draft statewide housing targets. In an ambitious target, 2,001,000 additional dwellings are proposed to be constructed between now and 2051 across Metropolitan Melbourne – being almost double the number of existing dwellings currently constructed in Metropolitan Melbourne.  While the draft housing targets are a welcome announcement for the property development industry, there is no clarity on how these targets will actually be met to ensure that this housing stock is constructed within these timeframes or the preferred typology and siting of the dwellings. The Government wants local councils to 'unlock space for more homes by proposing changes to local planning rules', with the intention of giving developers 'the confidence they need to get on and build'. Gadens Partners Andrea Towson and Brihony Boan, and Lawyer Anthony Tchakerian consider what gaps needs to be filled, to ensure these targets can be achieved. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gAC_BuNp #Auslaw #Housing If you found this insight article useful and you would like to subscribe to Gadens' updates, click here: https://lnkd.in/gwqNGne

The Globe and Mail has published an excellent study that has identified properties owned by the federal government and agencies that could potentially be repurposed to build affordable housing. Over 600 sites across Canada could increase supply by 288k new homes for 700k+ people. Affordable housing needs affordable land to build on. With high inflation impacting the cost of construction in terms of building materials and skilled trades people, this access to lower cost land will be key to enabling increased housing supply. The analysis should be expanded to include similar properties owned by provincial and municipal governments as well. Working together, all three levels of government plus private sector developers, financiers, and housing managers including not-for-profit institutions, can collectively initiate projects that will increase housing supply in a sustainable manner.

The missing middle in inclusive residential-grade mid-rise apartments and townhouses is a challenge in Australia due to the lack of "inclusive policies" governing the use and sale of surplus land by the Federal, State and Local Governments across Australia Public Land suitable for residential use. In contrast, the Mayor of London mandates up to 50% of such land for affordable housing, resulting in over 30,000 affordable dwellings on surplus land sold off suitable for residential use. As a proven "Placemaker" with a track record of winning tenders for major urban projects, I have voluntarily set aside 30% to 50% for affordable housing, leading to above-average capital growth and long-term value retention in all my previous major urban projects with no mandatory requirements, just through my initiative and sense of "social responsibility." All my previous major urban projects have achieved above-average capital growth for decades and are tightly held. Also missing across Australia today is a fast-track solution, a fast-to-market solution instead of relying upon slow, inefficient custom construction methods with vast shortages of tradies, a more sustainable solution in advanced modular construction platforms built from Renewable plantation forest trees into Cross Laminated Timber construction with great design, detailing and finishes minimising expensive building materials waste going to landfills which is unsustainable. The Thrive Alliance's expertise is over 100,000 CLT major urban reference projects worldwide, all of which use Engineered wood in Cross-Laminated Timber construction. #Harropfactor #Placemaker #SocialResponsibility #Inclusiveness #residentialgrade #midrise #townhouses. #ThriveAlliance #AffordableHousing #CLT #SydneyHousingCrisis #fasttomarket #sustainability #ThriveConstruct #EssentialWorkers

This week I spoke to Gus McCubbing at The Australian Financial Review about how planning delays are impacting upon the supply of housing in Victoria. Whilst planning is only one part of addressing the critical housing shortage, it is important to shine a light on how slow the process can be. In an environment with higher interest rates and construction inflation, delays can be the difference between projects finishing or being abandoned mid way. Tim Gurner of GURNER™ Group who was also interviewed for this piece, estimates that less than half of the 51,000 new dwellings approved in Victoria last year will actually get built. This is despite the Victorian State Government targeting 80,000 new homes a year. We need a reformed planning system that is up to the task of making good decisions, on an increasing number of medium density projects, in much quicker timeframes. #housingcrisis #missingmiddle #betterplanning

If we want to increase housing supply, what are we doing to free up Council resources? I am using a very minor example to demonstrate that there could be a comprehensive way of identifying inconsequential approvals so as to redirect council resources towards housing supply matters. I lodged a DA for a fence. After 8 days its status remains "pending lodgment" on the Planning Portal. I called council, they have a lot of applications and are dealing with them on a first come, first served basis. Council over a week to consider whether they will accept lodgment of a DA for a retaining wall straddling a boundary and supporting a fence. The documentation is a 1 page covering letter, two plans containing sections, a construction specification, proof of ownership (both sides of the boundary) and references to supporting clauses in the Dividing Fences Act and the Exempt & Complying Development Act. Why did I lodge a DA if these Acts deem a fence and its supporting structure on a boundary to be exempt development? Because, where the support structure of the fence is a retaining wall, the Dividing Fences Act does not apply if Council has a policy that requires a DA. They want a DA because they are concerned about disputes (which they won't get involved in), but if I shift it onto one lot or the other, no DA is needed. As an aside, the Dividing Fences Act deals with the dual ownership issue for the fence and suggests the supporting structure (the retaining wall) is part of the fence. If I move the retaining wall, I will end up with a compromised side access for that house. I don't want the person who buys the house I build and sell, being inconvenienced for all time. It is a very small issue, right? But here are the implications: 1. Unnecessarily inconvenient to future residents. A bad outcome. 2. Unnecessary waste of resources. 3. A certifier would deal with it if councils don't deem a DA necessary. 4. It has taken over a week so far to simply accept lodgment of a simple DA. 5. How long will it take to issue a consent that is inevitable? 6. All this work will delay my buyers from moving into their home. If we want to build more houses quickly, we need to put our valuable and scarce resources to better use. I would suggest that the Dept of Planning ask Councils to conduct an audit of what their staff are spending their time on, identify the legislative triggers for that work and where appropriate, promote changes to the EP& A Act, LEPs and DCPs The Dept of Planning could review those suggestions and enact the changes it deemed viable. The aim would be to help to free up Council resources. A small step in a long journey towards achieving what are extremely ambitious housing targets. In the example above, the Dividing Fences Act has dispute resolution provisions, so if a privately certified retaining wall became the subject of dispute, it would deal with it - Council would not be involved anyway.

There has been much discussion recently about Cairns needing to develop upwards with units and apartments rather than expanding outwards with more detached housing. However, the primary obstacles are the high construction costs and the fact that apartments often do not meet basic family needs. I know of several councilors who would benefit from reading this article. https://lnkd.in/gm9cUquW #Cairns #RealEstateAU

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬 Holland Metropole partners are among the 12 real estate sector groups which have called on the government to take urgent action to tackle the country’s “huge housing shortage”. Developers, investors, local authorities, home owners, and tenants’ organisations have signed up to a new agreement to accelerate plans to build at least 100,000 new homes a year. Housing has become unaffordable or unattainable for an increasing number of people, the organisations argue. In particular, there is a shortage of affordable homes for people starting on the housing ladder, seniors and people in need of care. This, they say, is partly due to increased construction costs, interest rates and government policies. But at the same time, many plans for new residential developments fail to get off the ground. “We need to combine the forces of the private sector, public housing bodies and governments,” says Martin van Rijn, chairman of housing corporation umbrella group Aedes vereniging van woningcorporaties. “We should stop waiting for each other and start working at the same time, and get locals involved at an early stage.” In particular, the alliance is calling on the government to reduce the options for objecting to new developments, strengthen the capacity of the administrative court system and give more weight to the interests of house hunters in planning applications. Caretaker housing minister Hugo de Jonge said last year he planned to slash red tape and limit the right to appeal. In addition, ensuring that one third of the 100,000 new homes each year are rent-controlled and a further third are affordable will require financial backing from the government – of between €3 billion and €5 billion a year, the alliance says. “The money is needed to build new infrastructure and for investments creating green spaces and for climate-adaptive measures,” says Tobias Verhoeven, director of developer Synchroon, and Holland Metropole member. “Without practical and financial support in the short, medium and long term, it will not be possible to realise the required numbers of homes of the desired quality.” The groups involved have already... 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐡𝐭𝐭𝐩𝐬://𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐞.𝐜𝐨𝐦/𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥-𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞-𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫-𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬-𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭-𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧-𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬-𝐭𝐨-𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞-𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞-𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠-𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬

Developing better standards for apartments, then increasing their supply by expanding use of the Residential Growth Zone will unlock more housing choices for Victorians and make better use of our infrastructure. The Business Council of Australia is calling for extensive rezoning across Melbourne and major regional towns to encourage more medium- and high-density housing to be built near infrastructure and services Annika Smethurst reports in The Age today - https://lnkd.in/gYcvEzec Making greater use of the existing Residential Growth Zone mechanism in areas near public transport and services would be a good start. And we should combine this with clearer standards and design guidance on low-rise apartments in the Victorian Planning Provisions. Check out 'Our Home Choices' from Infrastructure Victoria for more detailed evidence, analysis and policy recommendations - https://lnkd.in/eeaNi4rb #housing #choices #zoning #reform #infrastructure

One of the policy changes that Infrastructure Victoria can make to improve housing affordability and fairness is to ask for rental property investors to pay commercial property taxes. As a business activity it seems only fair they pay business taxes. The additional taxes can be used to fund more affordable housing and social housing infrastructure.