Property Council hails Coalition’s plan to unlock housing supply in Australia

The Property Council of Australia has welcomed the Coalition’s plan to accelerate home construction by fast-tracking environmental approval applications for residential developments if elected.

In the run-up to the federal elections, the Coalition has promised to tackle the existing housing crisis by setting firm timelines to eliminate the backlog of housing environmental approvals within a year and finalise projects stalled in the approvals process for over a year within six months.

The Coalition’s plan addresses a key demand in the Property Council’s pre-election document, which called for priority fast-tracked Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) assessments to unlock thousands of new homes.

Blaming the bureaucratic system for the delay in environmental approvals of new housing projects, Property Council group executive – policy and advocacy Matthew Kandelaars says, “Tens of thousands of homes are currently stalled in environmental approval processes and creating a priority pathway for housing developments will unlock critically needed supply.” 

“This is not about cutting corners, and maintaining strong environmental standards is non-negotiable. Any fast-track approval processes will need to find the balance between good environmental outcomes and housing supply – but that balance can and must be found.”

Recent statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveal a shortfall of over 30,000 homes against the National Housing Accord’s target of 1.2 million new homes by 2029, necessitating the construction of over 60,000 new homes every quarter. In the December quarter, only 45,167 homes were built across Australia, up 0.4 percent from the September quarter, and 41,911 homes were commenced, down 4.4 percent. 

“We have an ambitious and admirable target of 1.2 million new homes by 2029, but we need to double our national accord bonus of $3 billion to states who are tracking to build their fair share,” Kandelaars says.

“Both major parties need to double down on supply-side initiatives to get more homes built and more keys in the hands of Australian homebuyers and renters.”

Image source: Smarter-Incentives-More-Homes-Report.pdf (propertycouncil.com.au)