Planning delays hamper regional housing development, industry warns

Planning systems across Australia are struggling to meet housing demands, particularly in regional areas, according to the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

HIA Executive Director of Planning & Environment, Mike Hermon, said house approvals are taking longer than ever to get through local councils, exacerbating housing and rental shortages.

“Unfortunately, the housing shortages being experienced in capital cities are even worse across nearly every regional town in Australia,” Mr Hermon said.

The issue is becoming more pressing as more Australians move to regional areas. ABS data shows 28% of Australians now live outside major capital cities, a figure expected to rise as people are priced out of metropolitan areas.

Mr Hermon identified three key factors hampering housing delivery in regional Australia:

Access to build-ready land
Lack of investment in infrastructure for new housing estates
Staff shortages in regional councils to process planning approvals

Despite the introduction of a National Planning Reform Blueprint 12 months ago, aimed at fast-tracking approvals and addressing impediments to new housing delivery, Mr Hermon said homeowners and builders are seeing no meaningful change.

“House approval timelines continue to take longer and getting more complex to obtain,” he said.

The HIA has compiled a ‘Planning Scorecard’ to assess each state and territory’s progress in implementing the Blueprint measures. No state scored higher than 3 out of 5.

“The HIA Scorecard outlines that every planning system across the country is struggling under the weight of housing demands, and that the time for business-as-usual solutions to planning and zoning issues has passed,” Mr Hermon said.

He called for bold leadership from all tiers of government, emphasizing the need to address issues in regional Australia to enable growth and development.

“Instead, we need bold leadership by all tiers of Governments and this needs to not just be focused on major capital cities but address the key issues being faced in regional Australia to enable these regions to grow and flourish,” Mr Hermon concluded.