I have warned that Western Australia is facing an impending housing supply shortage several times in this column over the past two years.
Perth’s housing market is booming thanks to government stimulus measures aimed at building new homes, as well as historically low interest rates, rent shortages, high employment and to more people looking to buy instead of travel.
High levels of demand, coupled with constraints on the supply of new land and housing, are creating a perfect storm for a critical shortage in the months and years to come.
Housing shortages are having a knock-on effect on prices, and Perth is unlikely to continue to retain its title as Australia’s most affordable city if supply continues to dwindle.
It is against the backdrop of this looming housing shortage that the UDIA WA has welcomed the announcement last week by the state government that government land will be made available to develop residential housing estates. mixed.
Housing and Lands Minister John Carey and Planning Minister Rita Saffioti have launched an appeal for Registration of Interests (ROI) to develop mixed housing estates on vacant government land which has remained unused .
Under this program, called the Housing Diversity Pipeline, the state government has undertaken a detailed review of its land holdings to determine what land can be offered to the private and nonprofit sectors to provide housing in partnership with the government.
The sites identified align with the state government’s intent to increase density in key transportation areas and corridors.
The first tranche of the Housing Diversity Pipeline released for ROI includes 12 government-owned land properties adjacent to Metronet stations and transportation corridors. Ten sites are located throughout the Perth metropolitan area and two are located in the WA region.
Although the development industry is keen to explore the possibilities of providing housing choice in these locations, given ongoing supply concerns, this should only be seen as the first step in addressing housing issues. ‘offer.
There will likely be considerable constraints on the lands that have been set aside, so it will be difficult to deliver to those lands quickly.
The UDIA has made several recommendations to the state government, which we believe should be implemented in conjunction with the release of “lazy land.”
Our recommendations focus on the long term to establish a strategic planning system that facilitates the delivery of housing, including traditional houses, apartments and townhouses, to the market in an efficient, effective and sustainable manner.