Australia housing target at risk amid supply and efficiency concerns

Australia is currently trailing its target to construct 1.2 million new homes over a five-year period. Data indicates the nation is already more than 100,000 homes behind schedule. To meet the mid-2029 deadline, the required completion rate must increase from the current average of approximately 44,000 homes per quarter to nearly 69,000 per quarter.

Denita Wawn, chief executive of Master Builders Australia, warned that without policy changes, the country could fall short by approximately 260,000 homes. Key obstacles cited include tax changes affecting investor attractiveness, slow infrastructure funding, lengthy approval processes, and workforce shortages. Additionally, rising material costs linked to Middle East conflicts are impacting developer feasibility.

Parallel concerns have been raised regarding the quality of existing and new housing. A report by the Energy Efficiency Council suggests that weak policy settings are leaving many households in energy-inefficient homes, leading to high utility bills. While solar and battery uptake has increased, electrification and thermal performance improvements have lagged. This has sparked political debate over whether mandatory minimum energy standards for new homes should be enforced or treated as optional to reduce upfront construction costs.