Grim conditions for Sunny Coast
The current housing supply issues facing Sunshine Coasters are a “15-to-20-year fix,” according to a new report, and that’s if radical action is taken now.
According to the latest Sunshine Coast property market report from Direct Collective, housing supply in the region is on a trajectory to seriously fail to keep up with a growing demand in the decades to come.
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Lead researcher of the Sunshine Coast Property Market Update (SCPMU), Mal Cayley, said their findings painted a “bleak picture” for the beachside destination.
“When we look at the data and the opportunity the Sunshine Coast presents with jobs, lifestyle and a strong economy, we believe by 2041, the Sunshine Coast will be home to around 587,000 people, which is 67,000 more than the estimated government forecast of 520,000 (medium series projections),” Mr Cayley explained.
“The South-East Queensland Regional Plan 2017 (Shaping SEQ) suggests that to meet the forecast demand, the Sunshine Coast would need to supply 87,000 new dwellings by 2041 — circa 3,500 per annum. At best, new dwelling supply has averaged 3,000 per annum.
“The current undersupply of housing is a 15-to-20-year fix, and every year without a radical change to improve supply will likely extend the potential resolution by another three years due to the compounding effect, meaning at this rate, it is unlikely the market will balance in our lifetime,” he said.
Though the state and local governments have numerous projects underway to stimulate housing construction, the report found that even with new greenfield development releases, the rate at which dwellings are completed will not keep pace with the growing demand.
Mr Cayley urged lawmakers to look at policies that may expedite construction and encourage investor participation in the market.
“This is why we need to urgently identify more expansion areas and cut red tape and costs to ensure faster and better infill development. At the same time, we need to encourage investors back into the market, especially to supply more of the ‘missing middle’ to house the growing number in our community looking for an affordable rental,” Mr Cayley said.
Because as available dwellings dwindle, renters in particular are expected to struggle for adequate housing.
He opined that incentivising so-called “mum and dad investors” was the most realistic course to tackling the need for supply.
“Residential property investors currently house 92 per cent of renters on the Sunshine Coast, and we need to be real about the actual volume of new builds by government and corporates (build to rent) to actually meet demand, much less address the enormous undersupply. Therefore, our only real hope comes back to those in our community who can develop and invest in the missing middle housing product,” Mr Cayley said.
The Sunshine Coast is particularly in need of higher density dwellings such as terrace houses, apartments, townhouses, duplexes and units close to amenities, public transport and key business nodes.
Without these, Mr Cayley predicted trouble ahead.
“I believe that unless radical change is made to increase housing supply, then we’ll see shanty towns of non-approved accommodation like shipping containers grouped in non-approved locations taking over parkland and it will become an accepted form of accommodation here before the Olympics”.
