A drop in new home building approvals must be reversed
The 169,140 new homes approved in 2024 is 30 per cent lower than required to achieve the 1.2 million National Housing Accord target.

A drop in new home building approvals shows the need for process improvements, according to Master Builders Australia.
New data shows a 3.6 per cent reduction in the total number of new home approvals for the month of November 2024 when compared with earlier months.
Detached housing approvals dropped 2.2 per cent during the month and there was a 5.6 per cent reduction in higher density approvals.
Over the year to November 2024, 169,140 new homes received approval, about 30 per cent lower than required to achieve the 1.2 million target by mid-2029 under the National Housing Accord.
Master Builders Association’s Shaun Schmitke said: “Despite some positive signs in 2024, these latest figures highlight the need for us to remain focused on the need to remove the roadblocks still holding Australian builders back.
“To address the housing crisis and meet the 1.2 million new homes target in the next four and a half years, we need action to streamline approvals processes, bring down costs and speedup the time it takes to build a new home.
“This will require a whole-of-government approach to tackle the challenges and remove roadblocks, and we need all sides of politics committed to tangible solutions so we can let Aussie builders get on with the job they are ready and willing to do.”
Australian Conveyancer highlighted this issue after a list of councils was drawn up showing the slowest across New South Wales.
Georges River residents faced an average wait time of 289 days, placing the council at the bottom of the efficiency rankings table.
Find out which other councils were featured here https://www.australianconveyancer.com.au/article/how-can-it-take-289-days-to-wait-for-development-approval/
MBA chief economist Shane Garrett added: “The past five years have seen about 942,000 approvals for new homes, which is around 250,000 short of the 1.2 million required by the Accord.
“At the current rate of approvals in the 12 months to November, we are about 30% lower than what we require.
“We need to see a fast improvement in the approvals number if Australia is to have any chance of meeting that 1.2 million home target.”