South Australia is best positioned to deliver housing supply, but states must do more: HIA

The Housing Industry Association has scored each state and territory’s housing policies to see which is most prepared to build much-needed new homes. See how your state fared.

Labor has a target of 1.2 million new homes to help ease the housing crisis, but it is relying on the states and territories to deliver them. Picture: Flavio Brancaleone/NewsWire

South Australia and Western Australia are best placed to deliver the new homes Australia desperately needs according to the nation’s peak housing construction body, which has called on all state and territory governments to do more to add to supply.

The Housing Industry Association’s Policy Scoreboard Rating has ranked the housing policies of each state and territory government’s against 10 key metrics it believes are crucial to hit the federal government’s target of 1.2 million new homes.

The categories include the availability of first-home buyer grants, stamp duty exemptions and shared equity schemes, new home transfer duty exemptions, commitments to new and social housing targets, fast-tracked land release programs and development approval capacity, and whether a land supply dashboard has been established.

It comes as construction in the September quarter – the first three months of the target being active – was less than three quarters of the required build rate despite a rebound in activity. Industry experts suggest the shortfall will be 200,000 to 350,000 by 2029.

Housing Industry Association senior economist Matt King said the goal must be reached and state governments need to do more.

“This is the time for policy settings that promote housing supply,” he said. “It will help us make inroads on housing affordability, therefore boosting home ownership and certainly bring about an easing in the rental market.”

South Australia cleared all but one requirement to take out top spot in the rankings, failing only to have stamp-duty exemptions on all new housing. Western Australia was the second-best performer nationally with a score of eight out of 10, with the report also noting a lack of new build tax exemptions and no fast-tracked land release program.

South Australia’s Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Nick Champion, said the state’s Housing Roadmap was a critical change.

“The government is working with the property and development industry to unlock more land so they can build the houses we need now,” he said.

NSW and Victoria each scored six out of 10, with neither state offering incentives for building trades. Queensland fell into the second half of the list with a score of five. However, the new LNP government is expected to implement a $165m shared-equity scheme next financial year.

Mr King said it was a concern the three largest states recorded only middling results because they are expected to deliver 77 per cent of the 1.2 million target.

“Unfortunately, NSW in particular is currently tracking well short of its allocation. Victoria is also not close to necessary commencements,” he said.

“Queensland, surprisingly, is performing comparatively well compared to the rest of the country. But the state government risks thwarting the opportune moment that it has with inadequate policy settings for housing supply.”

Tasmania and the Northern Territory both received a policy score of five, while the ACT was the worst performer on just four.