Page 1639 - Week 06 - Thursday, 23 July 2020
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The opposition makes some politically convenient but untrue assertions in bringing this matter to the Assembly today. Under the ACT housing strategy, the government aims to give Canberrans housing choice. The commonwealth’s HomeBuilder scheme can be accessed by Canberrans buying off-the-plan dwellings or constructing new homes. The $25,000 offered under the scheme, however, cannot be used as a deposit, as Mr Coe suggested. There are affordable and desirable options in the market available for both types of buyers. HomeBuilder has limitations, however, and is a relatively narrow scheme, but it is available to Canberrans who meet its strict criteria.
To be clear, the federal government did not consult with the ACT government or any state or territory government, prior to announcing the HomeBuilder scheme. That was disappointing. This is not how to achieve the best outcomes for the community or industry. As a result, since the announcement, the Treasurer has been working with the commonwealth to address the implementation issues associated with definitions, compliance and monitoring which were not fully contemplated in the announcement.
Nevertheless, there is housing choice available to ACT families who are accessing this scheme. Those families can choose a block of land in one of the government’s new suburbs. They could also elect to purchase off-the-plan property in different locations across our city. One of the narrow criteria for the HomeBuilder scheme is that the land must be build ready. Aside from price, this is another way the scheme is limited. This is not the way greenfield suburbs are typically developed. Usually, land is sold many months prior to build readiness. This is good planning; it means land is released to the community as soon as it is available. Families have time to plan for settlement of their chosen block, make choices about the design of their home and provide time for construction well in advance. HomeBuilder requires construction to commence within three months, which is a very short time frame for construction in greenfield estates.
It also makes no sense for the opposition to suggest that the ACT government release more land for the purposes of HomeBuilder. The commonwealth scheme is for a six-month period, but land must be ready in three months to quality. Civil works and planning have much longer time frames. The government is not going to hurry off and bulldoze forests, as appears to be suggested by those opposite, to make more land available to prop up a commonwealth scheme that has not been working successfully. The government has a coherent plan for land release in the ACT over a four-year time frame that is known as the indicative land release program and is reviewed annually.
There are roughly 188 residential land blocks available through the government that are priced to take advantage of HomeBuilder, across Molonglo, Gungahlin and Ginninderry. Potential eligibility has been calculated based on the house size. This type of dwelling would suit most first home buyers looking to construct a family home. In addition to the single residential land blocks available in the ACT for new constructions, there are off-the-plan units, apartments and townhouses which would qualify for the HomeBuilder scheme if the cost is under $750,000. The opposition may say that no-one wants to buy a townhouse or unit off the plan; however, sales figures tell a different story, and there remains a strong demand by families looking for low-maintenance dwellings close to urban amenities. There are over 90 multi-unit
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