Nation’s big home build already off target
After the first full year of the national housing target, construction is already behind by tens of thousands of homes.
Federal goals to build more than a million homes within five years are more than 60,000 behind schedule after the first 12 months.
latest construction activity figures The report, published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, reveals construction has started on more than 179,000 homes in the 2024/25 financial year.
The figures are from the first full year under the national housing deal’s target to build 1.2 million homes by 2029.
To reach this figure, 240,000 houses need to be built every year.
Peak bodies warn the target could fall below 200,000 homes by the end of the five-year period.
Tim Reardon, chief economist at the Housing Industry Association, said last year had underperformed the sector and there was a significant amount of work to be done to catch up.
“There has been significant policy reform this year that will improve the supply of new homes,” he said.
“These reforms will take time to deliver new homes and much more needs to be achieved.
“Despite these new initiatives, home building remains very expensive due to the heavy taxes, fees and charges incurred in bringing new homes to market.
“Policymakers must reduce taxes, costs and restrictions on home builders, home buyers and home investors if they want to see the construction volumes Australia needs.”
Master Builders Australia managing director Denita Wawn said there was plenty of room for improvement in construction figures.
“The building and construction industry is ready to deliver, but the government needs to provide them with the tools to increase productivity,” he said.
“Accelerating approvals, streamlining regulations, addressing skills shortages and supporting private investment will give the industry certainty to mobilize projects.”
The latest figures for the June quarter show 45,156 homes started construction in the period.
There was a 9.2 percent increase in the number of houses whose construction started in this quarter compared to the same period in 2024.
However, this year there was a decline of 4.4 percent from the March quarter to the June quarter.
The number of single-family homes starting construction fell 6.4 percent in June, the weakest quarter since March 2024.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said the figures were evidence more needed to be done to address the housing shortage.
“You hear the promises, you see the big numbers, but the reality is far from that. Workers make excuses and do not build houses,” he said.
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