‘Things are about to get a lot tougher’: Calls for short stay regulation

Interstate migrants are knocking on the door to come to Tasmania, the Premier says as the state suffers critical growing pains. WHAT IT’LL MEAN >>

TASMANIANS should brace for a population boom as borders reopen and interstate migrants flock south, Premier Peter Gutwein says.

Speaking at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia lunch in Hobart, Mr Gutwein said relaxing the border restrictions on December 15 would open the floodgates.

The state is suffering growing pains from present levels of growth, including soaring house prices and labour shortages delaying major projects.

But Mr Gutwein said Tasmania was a state in demand.

“As we open up, they’re knocking on the door now and knocking loudly,” he said.

“We’re going to see population growth, I think well above the Treasury forecasts that are in the budget at the moment.

Treasury predicted a growth rate of between 0.5 and 0.6 per cent. The state’s population in March 2021 was 541,965, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

“There is real interest in Tasmania as there has been right throughout the pandemic. People want to move to the safest jurisdiction on the planet. And I expect that continue, “ Mr Gutwein said.

“Last year at the peak of the pandemic when we had just under 1000 people that were quarantined in hotels, travelling in from interstate, around 50 per cent in fact, more than 50 per cent on average of those people, were paying for the privilege to be in that hotel because they wanted to move here or they were bringing skills here.

“The appetite for Tasmania is very strong.”

Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein speaks to the media at Elizabeth Street Pier in Hobart on Tuesday, November 2, 2021.

Mr Gutwein said even before the coming boom, new dwelling approvals have jumped from 2600 a year to 4300 a year.

“What we’re looking to do is to build as many houses as we possibly can and at the moment, we’re at record levels in terms of dwelling approvals and in terms of dwellings being built, and we just simply need to keep that pace up,” he said.

And Mr Gutwein defended his government's sputtering infrastructure program.

The Mercury on Saturday reported that the Liberals had spent just 57 per cent of the money pledged for infrastructure in 2020/21, short-changing voters by $470m.

“When we brought down the budget last year, one of the key things in it was we would see the private sector leave the market,” Mr Gutwein said.

“At that time, there was obviously great uncertainty for private sector investment and concern about whether or not they’d be able to get finance and so from a state point of view, we brought forward significant infrastructure spending.

“Now what we’re finding though that I think this is a real positive — and I wish that some people would write about this — is that what we’ve seen as the private sector continue to grow and invest, which ultimately is a key aim of government.

“Now in terms of our key projects, there are a range of key projects that we need to continue advancing and we will do that.

“The remainder of the infrastructure program, we will work to deliver those projects in full but we’ll manage the timing of it to ensure that we’ve got sufficient capacity.”

Rental squeeze predicted ahead of border reopening

Tasmanian renters could have an even tougher time securing a home when borders reopen, according to one union, with concerns the number of short stay accommodation properties will rise as landlords prepare for more interstate tourists.

Tenants Union of Tasmania principal solicitor Ben Bartl said, properties were already making the switch to visitor accommodation.

He noted five out of 13 planning applications submitted to the Hobart Council applied for change of use to visitor accommodation.

“Almost forty per cent of planning approval applications were wanting to change use to short stay accommodation,” Mr Bartl said.

“We think it’s another sign things are about to get a lot tougher for residential tenants.”

Ben Bartl solicitor at the Tenants Union. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

Mr Bartl said many renters searching for a place to live were already struggling.

“The vacancy rate in Hobart and around Tasmania is extremely low,” he said.

“We know, particularly for anyone on a pension, there are no affordable properties.

“There’s none in southern Tasmania, there’s very few across Tasmania.”

Mr Bartl believed there were too many short stay accommodation properties in Hobart.

“We know from data released in November 2020, the Hobart city municipality, 12 per cent of the private rental market has been absorbed into the short stay accommodation sector,” he said.

“That’s the highest of any capital city in Australia.”

Mr Bartl said stronger regulations around short stay accommodation were needed.

“The difficulty is council’s hands are essentially tied in relation to the short term accommodation sector, it really does require the state government to pass legislation,” Mr Bartl said.

Hoabrt city. Picture: Richard Jupe.

“The local government would have to get its planning scheme amended to give it greater powers.”

Mr Bartl said the issue would feed into a similar problem, as renters considered other options, including caravan parks.

“We had been contacted by six tenants from right around Tasmania who had been evicted from caravan parks,” Mr Bartl said.

“The Premier had earlier announced the borders would be reopened, as a result, we thought some caravan park owners were taking the opportunity to spruce up their parks before the onslaught of tourists.

“The real concern is now the borders are reopening some of those tenants are going to be forced into homelessness because the caravan parks would prefer the extra money tourists are able to provide.”