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Rise in finance for new dwellings
15 May 2012
The latest housing finance figures for March contain some positives for the residential building industry as the market attempts to lift itself off the floor, according to peak building and construction organisation Master Builders Australia. Mr Peter Jones, Chief Economist, said, “The key finance indicator released today by the ABS shows that demand for new dwellings rose in March and is beginning to show some signs of a pick up, albeit from a weak base.” more
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Modest improvement in new home lending: HIA
15 May 2012
The March 2012 ABS Housing Finance figures show a modest improvement in new home lending said the Housing Industry Association, the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. “The number of loans for the construction or purchase of new homes lifted by 3.5 per cent in the month of March, which is a welcome piece of good news given the existing weak conditions facing the new home building sector,” said HIA Senior Economist, Andrew Harvey. more
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Budget faces many challenges
9 May 2012
The 2012 Federal Budget contains measures that will be appreciated by small and medium sized businesses particularly in the building and construction industry, but the real test of how the budget will be seen is the degree to which it will boost business and consumer confidence, according to Master Builders Australia, the peak body for the building and construction industry. Mr Wilhelm Harnisch, CEO of Master Builders Australia said: “Business is looking for a positive economic story over the next budget year. more
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No Home for Housing in Budget: RDC
9 May 2012
There were slim pickings for the residential sector in the 2012 Federal Budget according to the Residential Development Council (RDC). Tonight’s budget failed to deliver a plan to improve housing affordability, said Residential Development Council Executive Director, Caryn Kakas. more
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Federal Budget scraps green building incentive, doubles tax on international investors
9 May 2012
The Gillard Government has relegated productivity growth, a greener built environment and a world class funds management industry to the policy knackery. “It’s a budget of missed opportunities and misdirected priorities”, said Property Council of Australia Chief Executive Peter Verwer. “The Government has broken its regularly repeated promise to seed the retro-greening of commercial buildings.” more
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Federal Budget Misses the Mark on Housing: HIA
9 May 2012
The Housing Industry Association, the voice of the residential building industry, is disappointed that tonight’s Federal Budget represents a missed opportunity to reinvigorate new home building activity and alleviate the nation’s housing affordability pressures. HIA’s Senior Economist, Andrew Harvey, said that while the Federal Budget provides a handful of useful measures more broadly, it contains nothing to address the ongoing weakness in residential building, nor anything to help the nation’s chronic housing shortage and poor levels of housing affordability. more
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Bounceback in residential building approvals
8 May 2012
After a big fall in February, residential building approvals bounced back in March with the latest rate cuts yet to kick in, according to Master Builders Australia, the peak body for the building and construction industry. Mr Peter Jones, Chief Economist, said “The latest residential approvals figure only offsets the previous month’s big fall but the residential building industry is hopeful that confidence will improve on the back of last week’s rate cut.” more
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Budget Provides Opportunity to Boost Ailing Approvals: HIA
8 May 2012
Building approvals remain at very low levels despite posting a modest improvement in March 2012, further highlighting the urgent need for government action, said the Housing Industry Association, the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. “While it is positive to see a 7.4 per cent improvement in building in March 2012 we must acknowledge that this followed an 8.8 per cent decline last month. The volume on building approvals remains at alarmingly low levels despite the increase in approvals in March. The volume of building approvals in March still implies an annual rate of around 130,000… more
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Sizeable cut in official rates must be passed on: MBA
1 May 2012
Australia’s peak building and construction industry association, Master Builders Australia, in welcoming the decision by the Reserve Bank to lower official interest rates, called on the banks to play their part in restoring confidence to the Australian economy. Mr Wilhelm Harnisch, Chief Executive Officer, said “Banks must mirror the cut in official rates to help new home buyers as well as providing relief for existing homeowners and small businesses struggling with repayments.” more
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Large Rate Cut the Correct Move: HIA
1 May 2012
The Reserve Bank Board today determined to cut the Official Cash Rate (OCR) by 50 basis points to 3.75 per cent. Today’s decision is a decisive move which will help confidence and activity in residential construction and the wider domestic economy, said the Housing Industry Association (HIA), the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. “Following this appropriate step taken by the central bank today, a further interest rate cut needs to follow in June,” said HIA Chief Economist, Dr Harley Dale. more
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Confidence grows despite tough trading conditions: MBA QLD
1 May 2012
Confidence in the outlook for the Queensland building industry and the Queensland economy continued to grow during the March quarter, according to the March 2012 Survey of Industry Conditions report released by Master Builders today. Master Builders Director of Housing Policy, Paul Bidwell, said the latest report highlights rising confidence for the fourth quarter in a row. “We believe a range of factors have contributed to this improvement, with relatively stable interest rates and speculation of further rate cuts in 2012 at the top of the list,” Mr Bidwell said. more
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A 50bp interest rate cut is the appropriate decision, says HIA
29 April 2012
The consumer price index for the March 2012 quarter came in well below market expectations and a 50 basis point interest rate cut next week is justified, says the Housing Industry Association (HIA), the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. “The housing industry and wider Australian economy needs a further 75bps of interest rate cuts and there is nothing standing in the way of a 50bp move to get the ball rolling next Tuesday," said HIA Chief Economist, Dr Harley Dale. more
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New freight terminal to take 3300 trucks off Sydney roads
26 April 2012
The federal government is to build a freight and warehouse terminal in Sydney's south-west it says will take 3300 trucks off Sydney's roads every day. Transport and Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese announced the project on Monday and called for tenders to design, build and operate the terminal at Moorebank, near Liverpool. more
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Qld's housing sector dragging down economy: Newman
26 April 2012
Premier Campbell Newman says a new report into Queensland's economy shows that only one leg of the chair is holding up the state and the Achilles heel continues to be the housing sector. CommSec on Monday released its latest State of the States quarterly report, which assessed economic growth, retail spending, equipment investment, unemployment, construction work, population growth, housing finance and new dwellings. more
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Land sales signal weak year for new home building
20 April 2012
The latest residential land update signals persistent weakness in new home building in 2012. The HIA-RP Data Residential Land Report provided by the Housing Industry Association, the voice of Australia’s residential building industry, and RP Data, Australia’s leading property information and analytics provider, showed land sales hitting a fresh low and median land values rising further in the December 2011 quarter. more
