Current at: 19 March 2009
Housing starts fell heavily in the December 2008 quarter, as widely expected.
HIA, Australia’s biggest residential building association, said a second consecutive sharp decline in starts ahead of on-going tight credit conditions highlighted the importance of government measures to stimulate new home building in 2009.
HIA’s Chief Economist, Dr Harley Dale said that according to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released today, housing starts fell by 10 per cent in the December 2008 quarter following a fall of 9 per cent the previous quarter. HIA’s forecast was for a drop of 13 per cent. At a level of 32,637 for the December 2008 quarter, starts were running at an annualised rate of 130,548.
Detached house starts fell by 4.4 per cent to 23,175 in the December 2008 quarter. Multi-unit starts dropped by a sharper 21.4 per cent to 9,230.
“A lack of demand and a lack of available credit combined to send housing starts diving in the second half of 2008. The larger drop in multi-unit starts confirms that the credit crunch is having a disportionately negative impact on the high rise apartment sector. Indeed if you take out the plummet in unit starts in Queensland and WA, then a large part of the quarterly result is accounted for,” Harley Dale said.
“Hefty interest rate cuts and fiscal stimulus have yet to show up in these ABS housing starts figures.”
“The fact that starts dropped so far in the second half of last year highlights just how important the first home buyer stimulus is in 2009 and just how urgent the need is to implement the plan to construct new public and community housing dwellings, which will generate a multiplier effect for private dwellings along the way,” added Harley Dale.
The number of housing starts in the December 2008 quarter fell by 3 per cent in New South Wales, 5 per cent in Victoria, 25.4 per cent in Queensland, 13 per cent in South Australia, 8.8 per cent in Western Australia, and 0.8 per cent in the Australian Capital Territory. Starts increased by 1 per cent in Tasmania and jumped by 93 per cent in the Northern Territory.
