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hia.com.au/housing
HIA’s policy priorities for 2021-2025 outline the actions and areas of focus that governments should collectively support. This should ensure the housing industry can deliver the homes we need, where people want them and at a price people can afford. Here’s an abridged version of the eight policy priorities.
Housing supply underpins housing affordability and Australia’s home ownership rate. Ensuring housing supply by responding to changes in demand in a timely way should be the basis for all government actions that influence the housing market.
Supporting the delivery of all forms of homes along the housing continuum must also be a priority. If supply falls in any one sector, it will directly affect the affordability of housing in each of the other sectors.
The pandemic has changed people’s approach to housing. The type of homes people prefer, the location and the way they use their homes have all changed. A home has always been our haven – post-pandemic, many more Australians also see their home as their workplace, their retreat and they have refocused on their home as a key part of their future financial stability.
Property taxes are an important source of revenue that governments use to fund essential services. However the quantum of taxes on housing are excessive and inefficient. The high levels of tax inhibit supply and detract from the capacity of the industry to deliver affordable housing to the market. Housing is already the second most heavily taxed good in Australia – it must not become the highest.
The policy settings that emerge from governments over the next five years must recognise ‘housing matters’ and set the scene for success.
There are inherent safety risks on residential building work sites that must always be managed. Residential builders and trade contractors understand the importance of managing these risks on a daily basis. Yet the administration of safety has become complex for any business, large or small, with many construction solutions targeted at large scale projects, rather than single home sites.
The expectations on all businesses to manage the safety of their workforce is constantly changing. Emerging industrial diseases and increased understanding of mental health needs are also placing new expectations on businesses. Keeping pace is hard. Keeping pace takes time, requires ongoing education and support, and most importantly a commitment by all stakeholders to work together to deliver outcomes that are practical and achievable.
HIA will continue to make safety management in residential building easy to understand and practical to achieve on housing sites. This will ensure we keep our people safe.
The residential building industry has a long history of innovation in the development of building materials and products. However navigating the approvals, codes and standards to allow these innovations to become part of today’s building practices can be difficult.
Practitioners also struggle to keep pace with the rate of change in legislation, regulation, building codes and standards across three levels of government.
The career opportunities across all facets of residential building are vast. While our history as a male-dominated industry is real, the reality today is that women and men are participating actively across the industry. Women and men, particularly new industry entrants, need support to grow in confidence, build their future and take up the opportunities that exist in the residential building industry.
HIA will focus on opportunities to build a credible and trusted residential building industry that is capable and committed to delivering the homes Australians need at a quality they expect.
HIA will remain focused on delivering our vision over the next five years to provide leadership for the industry and to speak with a common voice on all industry issues. As the only national membership association dedicated solely to the needs of the residential building industry, HIA gains valuable insight from our engagement with the membership. This informs our views on the needs of the industry today and into the future.
HIA will continue to represent the views of our members and to deliver policy and business settings that meet the needs of the residential building industry.
To read the complete version, visit HIA Policy Priorities 2021–2025.