ACT & Southern NSW President's report

The residential building industry across the ACT and Southern NSW has continued to operate in a challenging environment over the past year, with elevated construction costs, ongoing regulatory change and the lingering impacts of the interest rate tightening cycle continuing to weigh on new home building activity.

While there were modest signs of stabilisation toward the end of 2025, overall industry conditions remain subdued.

Industry confidence remains low, work pipelines have shortened, and in many cases constructing a new home in the ACT continues to struggle to compete with established housing on price. This has contributed to lower commencements across the Territory, while housing demand has increasingly shifted across the ACT border into surrounding NSW regions where homes can often be delivered at more attainable price points.

Throughout the year, HIA has continued to advocate strongly for policy settings that support housing supply, improve planning efficiency and reduce unnecessary regulatory burden on the residential building industry.

A key advocacy outcome was securing agreement from the ACT Government to bring forward the review of the Urban Forest Act to 2025. HIA has consistently raised concerns about the operational impacts of current tree management rules where they unnecessarily constrain residential development outcomes. The review provides an important opportunity to ensure environmental objectives are balanced with practical housing delivery.

The ACT Government’s Missing Middle reforms remained a major focus for industry engagement. HIA has advocated for practical design rules and simplified approval pathways capable of supporting genuine medium-density housing delivery, while ensuring compliance costs and site constraints do not undermine housing supply or affordability.

Improving the efficiency of planning and building approvals has also been a priority. HIA’s continued engagement contributed to machinery-of-government changes that saw the creation of the City and Environment Directorate, bringing planning and city services functions together with a mandate to streamline approvals and improve coordination across the system.

Major regulatory reforms are also progressing across the sector. HIA has engaged extensively with government on the development and implementation of the Property Developer Licensing Scheme, advocating for clear definitions and proportionate compliance requirements so the framework strengthens accountability without imposing unnecessary red tape on builders and small businesses.

At the same time, the ACT Government is progressing work to develop a scheme for licensing construction trades, with HIA continuing to advocate for a framework that is practical, proportionate and supportive of workforce participation.

Risks associated with the rushed adoption of National Construction Code changes from 2025 remain a key issue for industry. HIA continues to advocate for a workable transition period before NCC 2025 becomes mandatory, it makes little sense for the ACT to move ahead of larger jurisdictions in adopting the code. A nationally aligned transition will be essential to avoid unnecessary cost increases and disruption to housing delivery.

Despite challenging market conditions, the residential building industry across ACT and Southern NSW continues to demonstrate resilience, innovation and a commitment to delivering high-quality homes. HIA’s events throughout the year provided valuable opportunities for members to connect, share knowledge and celebrate the strength of our industry.

With continued collaboration between industry and government, the region is well placed to support a stronger pipeline of housing in the years ahead.

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