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One year after the beginning of the Housing Accord, Australia has already fallen short of its target, missing 70,000 homes in its first year.
One year after the Albanese government introduced the Housing Accord to fix the housing crisis, dwelling construction has already fallen behind its 1.2 million target by 2029.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed that 168,981 homes were approved between 1 July 2024 and the end of May 2025.
Recent data showed that from 1 June 2024 to 30 May 2025, 181,643 new homes were approved which, despite an increase of approximately 165,000 homes from the previous year, fell short of the target.
To meet the national housing target, 240,000 homes need to be built across the country each year, or around 60,000 homes per quarter.
Data showed that in the December quarter, only 45,167 were completed, up 0.4 per cent, and 41,911 commenced, down 4.4 per cent.
Housing Industry Association (HIA) managing director, Jocelyn Martin, said that new housing starts still lag behind demand.
“HIA’s forecast of dwelling commencements, or gross new housing supply, shows only around 986,000 homes will be delivered to market over the five years to 2028–29,” Martin said.
Martin said that longstanding construction barriers have impacted builders’ capability to meet the national housing target.
“Builders are still facing the same barriers that have been holding the industry back for years. Land supply remains constrained, planning systems are slow and complex, and the cost of delivering a new home continues to rise because of charges, taxes, and red tape,” she said.
“Interest rates, skill shortages, and material costs only add to these pressures.”
Institute of Public Affairs data showed that build times across the country increased by 50 per cent, while costs rose by 53 per cent from 2014 to 2024.
The time and cost to build a home have surged across all states, with Western Australia seeing the longest delay, 85 per cent longer than average, with material costs up 45 per cent.
That is followed by South Australia, where build times are 74 per cent longer with a 51 per cent cost increase, while Queensland faces 58 per cent longer timelines and a 58 per cent cost rise.
NSW builds have taken 39 per cent longer and cost 55 per cent more. Victoria has seen its build time increase by 37 per cent, with a 56 per cent cost increase.
Tasmania still has the shortest built time, experiencing a 29 per cent increase in waiting time alongside a 55 per cent cost increase.
To boost construction and reach the national housing target, the federal government has announced a Productivity Roundtable in August to focus on cutting delays and unnecessary red tape around residential building.
“It appears to be finally registering with the government that we need to address red tape brought about by archaic approaches to planning and building codes. We need ways to improve workforce participation, and to encourage innovation, and we need to address the barriers to foreign investment which are holding back apartment supply,” Martin said.
Property Council of Australia chief executive, Mike Zorbas, said that, although the number of new homes is nowhere near its annual target, the Housing Accord has helped drive supply nationally.
Zorbas said that to meet the housing target, Australia needs to attract capital, simplify planning, and enhance productivity.
“We desperately need to address falls in productivity that mean we’re building fewer than half as many homes per hours worked today than in the mid-1990s.”
“Planning improvements so far have largely come through facilitation programs and not whole of system reform. That needs to change urgently,” Zorbas concluded.
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