UDIA NSW’s Post

Completions follow Starts follow Approvals. Upward pressure on house prices will continue until we can break through back of the supply/demand disconnect. #housingsupply #housingaffordability #housingaccord

Developers will bypass council approvals in residential development overhaul in NSW. Premier Chris Minns on Friday announced a pathway for developers to bypass council approvals, in order to speed up approval and delivery times. A new body named the ‘Housing Development Authority’ (HDA) will sit within the planning department to head the process. Leading the HDA will be three senior public servants, including Secretary of the Premier's Department Simon Draper, Secretary of the Department of Planning Kiersten Fishburn and Infrastructure NSW CEO, Tom Gellibrand. The authority will ask for expressions of interest for projects above $60 million in Sydney (on average 100 or more homes) and approximately $30 million (on average 40 or more homes) in regional NSW. While developers may still choose to lodge an application through the existing process involving councils, the HDA will provide a quicker alternative that could slash approval times by years. In essence, Councils will be stripped of the power to block large new residential developments in NSW, as part of major changes to the state's planning system. - Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)

The latest housing approval data suggest we're at a critical juncture in housing construction. While we've seen a period of intense fluctuation, there are signs indicating that the deepest valleys may be behind us. Construction costs and interest rates have found some equilibrium, hinting at the potential for a gradual upward trend in housing approvals. The goal of 80,000 new homes annually remains a steep climb, and the urgency increases with each year we fall short. This underscores the need for strategic initiatives and concerted efforts to boost the pace in the coming years. We also need to understand that changes in planning policy take time to work through the system before we see new housing coming out of the ground. #Housing #kpmgaustralia #planning #Melbourne https://lnkd.in/gTqwG3iY

While the headline is certainly flattering, we still have immense challenges, from the cost of land to the shortage of labour; from the insane cost of materials to high interest rates. My conversations with builders have me genuinely concerned that many of the projects City Council has approved simply won’t get built. In fact, I would not be surprised if some large development and construction companies go out of business this year. Things will likely remain dire until interest rates go down. A reminder once again that housing approvals does *not* equal housing starts, and local governments have only limited influence over actual construction. https://lnkd.in/gYdQDaBb

The Ottowa Government is to be commended for this progressive step. The standardization of designs to allow for fast tracked approvals is a positive move to ease the red tape around providing more housing and encouraging modular solutions. More governments should take this approach!

A report commissioned by organizations representing Ontario’s developers and builders argues provincial authorities are overstating the amount of shovel-ready land - by almost one million housing units - fuelling a misconception the industry is “sitting on lots," reported RENX Homes. "The study, authored by Keleher Planning & Economic Consulting Inc., found land for 331,600 units is ready for construction in the near future, compared to an estimate of 1.25 million housing units from the Regional Planning Commissioners of Ontario (RPCO)." "It also disputes the “narrative that has been put forward by the municipal sector that we as an industry, builder-developers, are sitting on lots on housing supply,” as the study suggests starts are at a 34-year high, according to Neil Rodgers, interim CEO of the Ontario Home Builders' Association." "The OHBA commissioned the report with the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)." https://lnkd.in/gKzXqi7g #ontario #residential #construction

Housing construction starts in Australia came in at record lows in 2023/24. But there are some better signs on the horizon as conditions are expected to improve in coming years. #construction #housing #property #realestate https://lnkd.in/g5d4aaRC

Residential construction work falls 2.8% The key to improving housing affordability is to build more housing. But the amount of new housing coming online is actually declining. A total of $19.6 billion of residential construction work occurred in the first quarter of 2024, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That was 1.2% less than the quarter before and 2.8% less than the year before. Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn said residential building activity has slumped at a time when communities are crying out for new homes. “If we are going to undo decades of under-building and resolve this housing crisis, we need to change the economic environment to encourage investment across all sectors of the industry by reducing the cost of construction work, reducing build times, reducing planning delays and slow approval processes,” she said. #property #realestate #homeloans  Residential construction work falls 2.8% The key to improving housing affordability is to build more housing. But the amount of new housing coming online is actually declining. A total of $19.6 billion of residential construction work occurred in the first quarter of 2024, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That was 1.2% less than the quarter before and 2.8% less than the year before. Master Builders Australia CEO Denita Wawn said residential building activity has slumped at a time when communities are crying out for new homes. “If we are going to undo decades of under-building and resolve this housing crisis, we need to change the economic environment to encourage investment across all sectors of the industry by reducing the cost of construction work, reducing build times, reducing planning delays and slow approval processes,” she said. #property #realestate #homeloans 

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data show just 44,456 new homes were approved for construction in NSW in the 12 months to January 2024 – the lowest annual approval rate in over a decade.   Urban Taskforce chief executive Tom Forrest said these numbers were a sign of a deepening housing crisis, with current approval rates less than half of what's needed to meet the federal government’s National Housing Accord target.   “The National Housing Accord target of 76,000 new home completions over 5 years from July 2024 will require around 90.000 approvals in NSW each year. This is equal to 7,500 each and every month,” he said   “In stark contrast to this target, NSW saw only 2,875 approvals in the month of January 2024.”   If the supply of new homes continues to fall short in NSW, both property prices and rents will likely continue to rise, as there won’t be enough homes available to meet growing demand.

Building approvals announced today by the ABS show once again that action needs to be taken to enable more homes to be built for the people of Australia. Despite a monthly uptick in multi-unit approvals in May, aggregate multi-unit approvals are 32% lower than the same time 12 months ago. “We cannot afford to live month to month on figures and need to look at the trend over the year to truly understand the circumstances we are in. Today’s statistics reveal that we are heading in the wrong direction if we want to have any hope of achieving housing affordability in the next decade,” said Col Dutton, UDIA National President. We are falling further behind and there is plenty of work to be done by Federal Government to incentivise and support state and territory action that boosts housing supply over a sustained period. This includes removing upfront barriers to housing in planning and enabling infrastructure – water power, sewer roads. Our full media release can be found at this link https://lnkd.in/gV6XJGP4 UDIA NSW, UDIA SA, Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) Victoria, UDIA NT, Urban Development Institute of Australia (WA) UDIA Queensland