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The property industry is reporting confidence as high as it was pre-pandemic, according to a new survey.
In the December quarter, the ANZ/Property Council industry survey score surged to 123 points – a 41-point improvement on the previous quarter, and marking a return to the levels seen prior to the onset of COVID-19.
The index scale considers 100 as “neutral”, with any score above 100 considered “positive”, and anything below considered “negative”.
Prior to the pandemic, the historical survey average was sitting at 123, with the December quarter marking the biggest quarterly index increase in the survey’s history, according to the Property Council of Australia.
For the council’s chief executive, Ken Morrison, the return to pre-pandemic confidence will be a critical factor in supporting the Australian economy over the next year.
With property Australia’s biggest industry and employer, Mr Morrison said “higher levels of confidence across our industry are good for the whole economy”.
He added: “There’s no doubt that Commonwealth and state and territory government economic stimulus and business support measures have done their job in supporting our industry and the economy through the worst impact of COVID-19.”
Even as stimulus measures are being wound back, the chief executive considered that critical industry confidence metrics such as forward work and staffing have returned to strongly positive results.
And the positive results are not confined to certain jurisdictions, with marked improvements noted across all markets surveyed.
In fact, all states and territories have reported big jumps in industry sentiment over the quarter.
Victoria saw the biggest jump in confidence, posting a high point of 115 – the first time the state’s survey has returned a positive result in four surveys, and after it posted a 64 in the previous quarter.
Across the country, Western Australia saw the nation’s highest confidence score – at 133. This pushed the state 14 index points above its own historical average, and nine points clear of its December 2019 result.
South Australia wasn’t far behind, posting a confidence score of 128 – 30 points higher than it posted in the previous quarter, and 11 points higher than it had pre-pandemic.
Not far behind was the ACT (125 points), Queensland (124 points), and NSW (123 points).
Weighing in on the findings, ANZ senior economist, Felicity Emmett, said the sharp rebound reflects both the lift in economic activity that’s occurred over the last few months, as well as stronger confidence in the 2021 outlook.
She considered that falling mortgage interest rates and targeted stimulus are clearly helping support the housing sector: “The HomeBuilder scheme, along with state and federal government initiatives, is giving the housing construction outlook a boost, although weak population growth and elevated unemployment will be headwinds.
In conclusion, Ms Emmett said “more broadly, government stimulus measures are underpinning the economic recovery and with that, sentiment.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grace Ormsby
Grace is a journalist across Momentum property and investment brands. Grace joined Momentum Media in 2018, bringing with her a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Communication (Journalism) from the University of Newcastle. She’s passionate about delivering easy to digest information and content relevant to her key audiences and stakeholders.
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