Grants of $20,000 up for grabs for serious renovations
Victorians had their tongues wagging at the prospect of receiving money to renovate or build new homes — but there’s a major catch on which projects will actually be eligible for the $20,000 grants.
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Cash grants of about $20,000 will be up for grabs for Victorians undertaking serious renovations or building a new home under a Federal Government scheme to be announced on Thursday.
The $700 million plan is designed to spur a building bonanza across the country and stave off a construction industry collapse. The cash will only be made available for projects predicted to have a minimum cost of about $100,000.
The high threshold would preclude small works and DIY projects to ensure tradespeople are employed.
Stringent means-testing will form part of the plan, as well as a Federal Government compliance program to ensure no one was rorting the system.
Existing systems, including the Morrison Government’s first home loan deposit scheme, will be adapted to roll out the program.
The uncapped package will be the fourth major COVID-19 stimulus announcement since the start of the pandemic.
While the construction industry is yet to suffer major effects like the entertainment sector, experts predict a sharp drop off in coming months as the JobKeeper wage subsidy stops.
Home extensions, remodels and new structures were the kinds of projects that could receive funds.
The Herald Sun understands states will be able to join the scheme and could announce further measures to strengthen homeowner confidence in taking up the offer.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has been in conversations with state treasurers, including Victoria’s Tim Pallas, about the states’ role in the scheme.
Urban Development Institute of Australia Chief executive Danni Hunter called on Premier Daniel Andrews to introduce cash grants, a deposit supplement scheme and tax exemptions for home buyers.
“The Federal Government’s package should give people the confidence to follow the Australian dream and become homeowners,” she said.
“But then it’s on our State Government to enable Australians to do that here in Victoria. If the Andrews Government doesn’t put a significant package on the table, we risk people moving interstate to take advantage of incentives offered by other jurisdictions.
“We need big incentives to give Victorians the confidence to buy a home right now.”
Essendon builder Mark Micklethwait said the package would provide a much-needed boost to an industry facing looming financial woes.
Since lockdown, his company Double M Constructions has managed to keep its six staff working, but there was uncertainty about the long-term.
“I had a couple of good jobs signed up prior to COVID-19, which has got me through this period, but my issue is in the next three to six months when these jobs come to an end,” he said. “Hopefully this might help larger jobs come back on board. It certainly helps me feel a little bit more at ease about the future.”
Social housing advocates have been calling on the government to use the scheme to fund renovations of existing public housing facilities or to build new ones.
Community Housing Industry Association and National Shelter modelling predicted investment in a four-year construction program to build 30,000 social homes would create 18,000 full-time jobs each year.
Federal Labor has also called for an investment in social housing for its economic and sociocultural benefit.
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