A recent survey sent out by ANZ and the Property Council of Australia indicates that housing affordability concerns felt amongst property professionals is at an all time high.

771 property professionals completed the survey for its March 2023 quarter edition. Industry rates, housing supply and affordability is the highest concern for respondents, with 41 percent selecting it as a critical issue, 10 percent up from the previous survey undertaken in the December quarter of last year.

Concerns regarding economic management and energy, environment and emissions totalled 16 and 13 percent respectively. In regards to state government priorities 43 percent of respondents believe housing supply and affordability is the number one concern in their states of residence.

“Governments can move the housing supply needle by twinning planning reforms with the right investment conditions to support more housing choice for Australians,” says Property Council Chief Executive Mike Zorbas, at a time where there is a national 79,300 home deficit over the next decade.

“Retirement living communities and purpose-built student accommodation have an essential role to play in combating the housing crisis and creating much needed choice for Australians.

“These forms of customer-led community provide advantages for residents that are not available in the broader market, including superior amenities and services.

“Creating a level playing field for build-to-rent is also vital. A recent study by EY, commissioned by the Property Council found that levelling the tax playing field for build-to-rent investments could result in the delivery of 150,000 rental homes over the next 10 years.

“These results also highlight the urgent need for the Senate to pass all of the Australian Government’s legislative agenda on housing to start reigning in the worsening supply crisis,” he says.

Industry confidence remains steady, with the Confidence Index remaining at 113 index points. A score of 100 in the Confidence Index is considered neutral. Zorbas says the survey indicates the concerns of macroeconomic uncertainty.

“This survey was conducted in early March just as questions were being raised around the global banking system and talks of an interest rate pause began, so the fact that confidence remained stable is encouraging,” he says.

“While confidence levels remained in positive territory, this survey indicated that the projected workload over the next 12 months is not as robust as it was last year,” he said.

Felicity Emmett, Senior Economist at ANZ, says she observed a small rise in sentiment towards residential property, while the sentiment towards commercial property remained unchanged.

“Higher interest rates and a weak economic outlook are clear headwinds to confidence, but strong immigration and low levels of listings are supporting housing prices and residential sentiment more broadly,” she says.

“The majority of firms continue to expect finance availability to deteriorate. Concerns about access to finance are likely driven by ongoing financial difficulties in the construction sector, as well as worries about credit tightening in the wake of the banking sector ructions in the US and Europe.

“Ongoing expectations of large increases in costs suggest construction firms are likely to remain under pressure.”

Jarrod Reedie

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