According to an article published in Broker News (4 Nov 2021), demand for housing is still accelerating, even after the HomeBuilder scheme concluded six months ago, with demonstrable approval numbers for detached buildings, multi-units and apartments continuing to rise during October.
DETACHED BUILDING APPROVALS ON THE RISE
Detached building approvals rose 15.5% and 32.2% during the three months to September compared to the same quarter in 2020 and 2019 respectively, as reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Housing Industry Association (HIA) economist Tom Devitt is quoted as substantiating a healthy pipeline of on-the-ground home building work to the end of 2022.
“Leading indicators, including HIA’s New Home Sales data, suggest that the detached market remains robust despite lockdowns.”
NSW LEADS APPROVALS
In seasonally adjusted terms, total residential building approvals increased in the three months to September across all states except Tasmania. New South Wales was the top performer at 38.5%, followed by South Australia at 30.5% and Western Australia at 28.6%.
“In addition to HomeBuilder, this (growth) has been driven by shifts in spending from services like travel, entertainment and dining out, towards housing,” Devitt said. “With Australians spending more time at home and accumulating a significant amount of savings, an increase in demand for larger living spaces is unsurprising.”