Enter your email and password to access secured content, members only resources and discount prices.
Did you become a member online? If not, you will need to activate your account to login.
If you are having problems logging in, please call HIA helpdesk on 1300 650 620 during business hours.
If you are having problems logging in, please call HIA helpdesk on 1300 650 620 during business hours.
Enables quick and easy registration for future events or learning and grants access to expert advice and valuable resources.
Enter your details below and create a login
“A slow return of overseas migration is easing the adverse impact of a loss of workers from Australia’s two largest states,” stated Tim Reardon, HIA’s Chief Economist.
“In 2021, more than 54,700 residents left NSW and Victoria as the COVID exodus to the regions continued. In the final quarter of 2021 however, the number of overseas arrivals more than offset this loss of inter-state migration.
“The loss of resident population in NSW and Victoria in the final quarter of 2021, has seen a growth of population in all other states and territories, except for the Northern Territory.
“Most notable, more than 50,000 new residents moved to Queensland in 2021.
“This remarkable ongoing shift in the location of the resident population has been a significant driver of the acute shortage of rental accommodation in Australia.
“With the return of overseas migration, Australia’s annual population growth has started to recover from the COVID shock with the resident population increasing by 0.50 per cent in 2021. This is compared to an average growth in the decade prior to COVID of 1.54 per cent.
“A stable and reliable migration pathway for skilled workers is central to a strong, and growing, national economy.
“The release of the initial 2021 Census data today also includes the number of unoccupied homes in Australia.
“Unoccupied dwellings have consistently made up around 10% of dwellings in Australia in the past 35 years.
“The 2021 Census shows that 10.1 per cent of dwellings were unoccupied on census night in 2021. The two main reasons for a dwelling being unoccupied were that it was a holiday home, or the residents were absent on Census night.
“This is not evidence of an under-utilisation of housing stock, but an indication that on any given night of the week, some households are on holiday,” concluded Mr Reardon.
“Expanding complying development will speed-up the delivery of keys in doors to new homes sooner,” said Brad Armitage HIA Executive Director NSW.
Over the past few years, the Federal Government has made a number of commitments to support homeowners into the dream of homeownership. The ‘Help to Buy Program’ is one of these commitments.
“The RBA decision to keep interest rates in restrictive territory today will not stop the improvement in leading indicators of future home building,” stated HIA Senior Economist Tom Devitt.
In mid-June 2025, the NSW Premier released the Housing and Productivity Contribution (HPC) Works-in-Kind Guideline for public consultation.