Page 424 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 22 March 2022
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(vi) the Pensioner Duty Concession Scheme;
(c) the ACT Government’s Housing Choices Collaboration Hub brought together a diverse group of Canberrans to discuss the future of housing in Canberra, with the Collaboration Hub showing a preference for infill development, for a wider range of housing typologies at a range of different price points, with a focus on development that allows people to age-in-place;
(d) preparing land for release is a considerable budget outlay for studies and infrastructure;
(e) unchecked urban sprawl will destroy the bush landscape that surrounds Canberra, risking that we lose protected flora and fauna forever;
(f) concentrating our development in our existing urban footprint improves sustainability and allows a more affordable lifestyle, close to shops, services and public transport;
(g) Canberra’s population is growing while our household size is shrinking and ageing, meaning that we need to find suitable options to allow people to downsize in their preferred location;
(h) according to the latest ABS data, Canberra’s residential property prices grew 28.8 percent between December 2020 and December 2021;
(i) building industry costs for materials and labour have significantly increased in recent months;
(j) the increased costs for building materials has made it challenging for local industry to deliver on some projects, and a large scale increase in building activity as a result of rapid land supply will likely create further affordability challenges;
(k) while housing remains affordable for most Canberrans, there are some that are struggling in the current housing market; and
(l) there are macroeconomic settings that affect the price of housing across Australia, and these settings that are within the control of the Commonwealth Government are the major driver of increasing land prices; and
(2) calls on the ACT Government to:
(a) call on the Commonwealth Government to address housing affordability using the economic levers available to it and waive the ACT’s historic housing debt to the Commonwealth;
(b) continue to deliver land and housing options that provide diverse and affordable housing options to give Canberrans choices; and
(c) keep supporting environmentally sustainable development that offers the amenity and services Canberrans need and expect.”.
Mr Assistant Speaker, the ACT government is using the levers that it has available to improve housing affordability, including reducing stamp duty every budget, abolishing stamp duty for off-the-plan unit purchases up to $600,000, a land release program that supplies dwellings—
Ms Lee interjecting—
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