Major housing firm riding high on ‘chronic undersupply’
One of Australia’s largest providers of apartments and residential communities has recorded strong growth in home sales as the nationwide debate over access to property continues.
Mirvac reported on Wednesday that net operating profit rose five per cent to $248 million in the first half of 2025/26 compared to the same period last year.
The result came as home sales increased by 38 percent and more than a thousand lots were traded; of these, 835 were paid, representing an increase of 22 percent.
Mirvac CEO Campbell Hanan said home search levels in January and February were similar to December as the group headed towards the end of its first half, given the new, rising interest rates environment.
“I can’t emphasize enough that there is a chronic undersupply of housing in Australia and that chronic undersupply will continue for some time,” Mr Hanan told analysts during a briefing.
“There is a lot of pent-up demand to address this housing problem.”
A rate hike by the central bank in February may not be enough to move the needle as demand slows, Mr Hanna said, pointing to the release of a recently sold-out land sale for a residential development in Perth’s Bullsbrook.
Mirvac development CEO Stuart Penklis said customer sentiment regarding the rise in interest rates occurred in September and October.
“We have seen continued momentum across our projects, especially from a leads (or inquiries) perspective,” he said.
“Leads in the December quarter were at their strongest level in four years, and this continued into January and February.”
Mr Penklis said Mirvac’s portfolio was not solely reliant on first home buyers, but upgraders and right-sizers, particularly in target capital cities and the central ring of NSW.
Pre-sales were largely skewed to seniors and right-sizers at 69 percent, followed by investors at 19 percent and first home buyers at 7 percent.
The company is currently planning to build 800 apartments on the site of the former Sydney Fish Market in Blackwattle Bay, with first occupations targeted for 2030.
1,500 new homes are being built in partnership with the Western Australian government at Karnup, approximately 51 kilometers from the Perth CBD.
Mr Penklis said the semi-rural area was one of the fastest growing catchments in Australia.
“Underlying (housing) market fundamentals remain supportive, including strong population growth, continued undersupply, resilient home prices and rent growth expectations,” he said.
“With the capacity to offer land-built housing and apartments, we remain uniquely positioned across the entire housing spectrum (growth corridors, middle and inner rings).”
Mr Hanan said Mirvac was performing well across all of its businesses, including property development, ownership and management in major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.
Its portfolio consists of residential communities, office buildings, industrial assets, retail centers and build-to-rent projects.
Mirvac will pay investors a half-annual distribution of 4.7 cents per stapled security.
Shares rose nearly 5.5 percent to $2.04 in morning trading.
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