Building approvals continue to slide

PROPERTY NEWS

The latest building approvals figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics show a continued decline in construction activity in Queensland, according to Master Builders, Queensland’s peak body for housing and construction.

Master Builders’ Director of Housing Policy, Paul Bidwell said the latest figures suggests the fall in building approvals is gathering pace, rather than moderating, with Queensland faring worse than other states. The seasonally adjusted number of dwelling commencements has fallen by 2.6 per cent for private houses and 1.7 per cent for all dwellings for the month of May, compared to falls of 1.5 per cent and 0.1 per cent in April.
“The fall in building approvals is another disappointing development for the industry as it struggles to recover from the economic crisis. This highlights the fragile state of the Queensland building industry,” said Mr Bidwell.
“The results are not surprising given the sharp fall in finance commitments during the first half of this year; building approvals generally follow finance approvals by about three months.
“On the upside, the fall in finance commitments appears to be moderating, which gives some hope that approvals may start to recover in the latter part of the year. “However, this is very dependent on what happens with interest rates, and ultimately consumer confidence, over the coming months.
“We have grave concerns about what might happen if the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) decides to raise interest rates when it meets next week. Any rise in interest rates will further compound the problems faced by the building industry.
“Master Builders encourages the RBA to keep interest rates on hold this month, especially while the Queensland economy is underperforming compared to much of the rest of Australia.”


GOVT ‘MUST DO MORE’

Family First leader Senator Steve Fielding says Bankwest’s latest report into housing proves that the Federal Government needs to do more to ease our housing affordability crisis.
Senator Fielding said that the report’s findings, which show that it is taking almost a year longer to save for a deposit, mean that people are being forced to flush dead money down the rental drain.
“The latest figures make it clear that housing affordability is a real issue for thousands of Australians and it’s time the government got serious about doing something to ease the pressure of escalating property prices. “Owning your home is the great Australian dream and the government should be doing all that they can to keep that dream alive.
Senator Fielding wants the government to set up an Accessing Super Scheme, like the Canadian Home Buyers’ Plan, which would allow first home buyers to access $15,000 of their superannuation so they can use it for part of a deposit on a house.