Newcastle remains king in housing approvals

BY JARROD MELMETH

The Housing Industry Association says the Hunter is still riding the housing approval wave with 4,476 dwellings approved in the region over the past year.

According to the latest HIA Scorecard report, Newcastle leads the Hunter in the number of approvals with 1,419 followed by Lake Macquarie with 1,149 and Maitland 907.

Meanwhile, Singleton experienced the largest increase in new dwelling approvals up 173 percent followed by Dungog up 79 percent and Gloucester 58 percent.

HIA Hunter Executive Director Craig Jennion says he expects the Hunter to continue to ride the wave well into 2018.

"The really good news is that we are starting to see some of the middle ring councils in the Hunter - by that I mean Singleton, Dungog and Gloucester - in that particular order they have had the largest increase in the last 12 months, off very low base.

"That is starting to show that confidence in what is a mining area, which has been on a downward spiral for a number of years is starting to pick up.

"We are continuing to build on the peak that we have seen for the past few years. It is a bit unexpected for the Hunter, we did start to expect to come off the boil a little bit, but at the moment our numbers are - both in detached dwellings and in unit approvals - elevated over recent highs in the past five or six years," Mr Jennion said.

HIA Hunter Executive Director Craig Jennion.

Atrium apartments under construction in Hamilton.
 Image: Jarrod Melmeth

Now could be the time to buy your first house

BY JESSICA ROUSE

First home buyers in the Hunter now have more incentive to buy a house under the state government's new housing affordability package.

Announced last week by Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald, the reforms will see stamp duty abolished for first home buyers on properties up to $650,000 and a discount on properties up to $800,000.

However, Executive Director of the Housing Industry Association in the Hunter Craig Jennion says in some aspects of the package, the government may giveth what they may taketh away.

"The intention to, in the next couple of years, increase the cost of infrastructure back to the developer taking away from subsidies the state government had been providing, our concerns are that the state government is handing out to first home buyers in one level and giving them a discount, but in a couple of years time that discount maybe actually removed because of the increase in infrastructure costs," in the form of an infrastructure levy.

Scot MacDonald believes the government has found a 'sweet spot' for the Hunter where housing is available at a lower price and the package could really be of benefit. Savings could reach more than $20,000 and he says it just makes buying a house all that more attractive.

"Ontop of that we will also be abolishing the insurance duty on lenders, mortgage insurance. This is aimed fairly and squarely right at people trying to get into the housing market for the first time," said Scot MacDonald.

"We acknowledge that is a step in the right direction particularly for regional locations like the hunter where we do have a great diversity and price points for first home buyers so in most cases first home buyers should very easily be able to purchase a home and pay no stamp duty," said Craig Jennion.

A report has found we'd rather renovate than move.

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Rather than move to a bigger house, Hunter residents are choosing to renovate their existing properties according to the latest Housing Industry Association (HIA) report.

The latest report found the region recorded the second largest volume of renovation approvals, totalling more than $63 million dollars, of any area across NSW during 2015/2016.

"Things like interest rates, growth in prices of dwellings in the area, consumer confidence - are they going to be able to get a job in the next coming years to pay off the loan that they may have taken out and of course how easily they can get finances," said HIA Executive Director Craig Jennion.

The appetite for renovations is spurred on by the substantial rise in house prices with residents more willing to renovate and less willing to pack up and move to new home.

Craig Jennion says it's not only looking good for the Hunter in the short term but the long term as well.

"We're expecting here in the Hunter to see continued growth particularly in the renovation market and around that 10 per cent mark which will be fantastic for the local industry and in our new dwelling areas we're still expecting to continue to see considerable growth in the short term until we start to see what happens with interest rates."

Housing Industry Association hits back at developer ban

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Housing Industry Association (HIA) in the Hunter is hitting back after the state opposition called for a ban on real estate agents and developers from running in local council elections.

The legislation would aim to avoid another electoral donations scandal like that in the Hunter in 2011, and the opposition maintains allowing real estate agents and developers to make decisions about property and planning matters creates a major conflict of interest.

HIA Executive Director Craig Jennion disagrees, and believes it is really short sighted to say people in these professions shouldn't be involved just because of the occupation they work in.

"From the simple matters like what is a small or medium business and often they also handle very complex strategic plans and projects, they're involved with intricate financial matters, they have to market projects to the general public - these are skill sets and experiences which are highly desirable to local government," said Craig Jennion.

Measures like checks and balances are already in place to avoid any conflict of interest influencing decisions on council, and HIA believe that should be enough.

"The view that individual councillors have the capacity to influence a council vote on matters that will benefit them commercially is completely ignoring many of the checks and balances that are being developed in our system planning proposals where conflicts of interest exist have to be declared," said Craig Jennion.