Councils urged to join in planning reform
As 29 Tasmanian councils heading to the polls, candidates have been implored to commit to development planning reform, as voters asked to back it in.
TASMANIA’s local councils influence how many and how fast homes are built across the Apple Isle. It’s not just a matter for its state government, the housing industry’s peak body says.
As 29 local councils face elections next month, the Housing Industry of Australia has called on candidates to commit to planning reform and urged residents to carefully consider where they place their vote.
Housing Industry Australia Tasmania executive director Benjamin Price said councils’ oversight of zoning and local development applications was a key factor.
“The people we elect will have a real say over housing for the next four years,” Mr Price said.
“The state sets many of the rules, but a council that wants more homes can make a big difference, and one that treats every application as a problem to be managed can slow things right down.”
HIA’s 2026 Planning Blueprint found that Tasmania’s planning system did not adequately focus on residential land and well-located higher-density housing.
The report identifies common causes of delay across the country, including overly conservative local decision-making, repeated requests for more information, inconsistent approaches between councils, and extra conditions placed on approvals.
It said planning approval for a stand-alone house could take more than six months.
The Australian Zoning Atlas, published by YIMBY Melbourne, claims current settings left little room for anything other than low-rise housing. It finds about 97 per cent of residential land within 20 kilometres of the Hobart GPO is highly restricted, mostly because it permits no more than two storeys, the highest share of any Australian capital.
The Atlas also found that all but one of the Greater Hobart council areas it measures sit above 94 per cent.
“This isn’t a problem confined to one municipality. It’s the same story right across Greater Hobart, which is why we need councils working with the state, and their communities, to fix it rather than waiting for someone else to,” Mr Price said.
“We’d like to see new councils use their local planning schedules and rezonings to allow more homes close to shops, services and transport, and get housing applications decided on time without piling on extra requests and conditions,” he said.
“We’d also like them to back the state in adopting the Improving Residential Standards recommendations, which would allow more height and less car parking for townhouses and apartments, rather than resisting those changes when they come.”
Tasmania completed 2,456 new homes in 2024-25, about half of the 5,022 a year it needs to meet its share of the National Housing Accord target. HIA’s latest Affordability Report found housing affordability in Hobart deteriorated by 9.7 per cent over the year to June 2026.
“The councillors we elect this October will be in office until 2030, and if they’re serious about housing, planning reform needs to be at the top of their list,” Mr Price said.
NB: In Tasmania, local council voting is compulsory and by post, with ballot packs delivered from Monday 5 October and the poll closing on Tuesday 27 October.
