Government aims doubling of 2024-25 land release at units and townhouses, and first-home buyers

Residential land releases will double in 2024-25, with the overwhelming majority being for units and townhouses, with people struggling to break into the housing market and renters in mind.

The ACT Government’s Indicative Land Release Program for the next five years shows the government expects to release enough land for 21,422 dwellings, with 5107 in the coming financial year.

Of that 5107, only 427 are projected to be stand-alone homes, and most will be in the Molonglo Valley.

That reflects the government’s desire to get as many homes built as soon as possible to meet its national housing target and to favour first-home buyers, most of whom would be looking at more affordable units and townhouses.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr said the goal was to oversupply the market to bring prices and rents down, and a slowdown in population growth due to migration changes would help this.

Mr Barr said the market was price sensitive at present, particularly with interest rates staying relatively high, and there had been an easing of demand, particularly in the single residential space.

“Part of the thinking with the land release program and some further announcements that we’ll make in this Budget will be particularly focused on those getting into their first home,” he said.

“We also recognise some of the intergenerational inequity with how monetary policy and higher interest rates are impacting on the community, that those who have paid off their mortgage and have savings are the wealthiest they’ve ever been and those with a mortgage or looking to get into the market are really feeling the squeeze at the moment.

“The focus of policy in this budget has been to support those who are looking to get into the market for the first time and those who are experiencing high rental costs.”

Mr Barr said the releases were directed at where young people would want to live.

Planning Minister Chris Steel said there would still be opportunities for single residential homes in new areas of Ginninderry, Gungahlin and Molonglo, but infill areas already had a substantial number of these property types.

“We’re looking at what the opportunities are to provide more homes, and that means looking at things like missing-middle housing, but closer to the shops, things like multi-unit housing.

“This will provide a range of housing choices for people, not just in the new suburbs but also in the existing suburbs as well where that choice simply hasn’t existed in the past in previous years.”

The 2024-25 land releases in the new suburbs include Macnamara (375) in Ginninderry, Jacka (26) in Gungahlin and Denman Prospect (2940, although this is a re-release), Whitlam (168) and the future Molonglo Town Centre (700) in the Molonglo Valley.

There are also releases in Holt (168), and in Gungahlin for build-to rent project that should deliver 350 homes.

The government is also upping its support for Community Housing Providers with a multi-unit development site of about 65 dwellings in Molonglo, a site for 80 dwellings in Gungahlin, and about 100 dwellings in Moncrieff.

There is also land for 40 more public housing properties in Molonglo, which the Greens have criticised.

Mr Barr said the Greens signed off on the land release in Cabinet and their plan for 1000 homes a year over 10 years was not feasible, given workforce constraints and their own opposition to housing proposals in some areas.

He said that in an election year, they were playing politics.

Land in Gungahlin and Denman Prospect has also been identified for 136 affordable homes, where affordable purchase or affordable rental requirements will apply.

Canberra Liberals leader Elizabeth Lee said the government had not been able to meet its land release targets in the past, and the public could have no confidence that they would this time.

Ms Lee criticised the proportion of land released for single residential homes and said Canberrans had a clear preference for this type of property.

She said if the government were re-elected, Canberrans would continue to be deprived of a natural choice in the market.

“The Labor-Greens government has embarked on an infill agenda that doesn’t meet the Canberra community’s needs and wants,” she said.

Ms Lee said a Liberal Government would release more land for detached housing, including investigating West Tuggeranong, review the planning laws, look at cutting lease variation charges and improve workforce training.

Master Builders ACT CEO Michael Hopkins welcomed the government’s recognition of the need to increase land release but said most of the promised land release would not be shovel-ready for many years.

“If the government wants to provide more housing for Canberrans, it should be mindful of the impact and cost of new building regulations such as tree clearing laws, the price of new land released to the market and the impact of ACT Government taxes, fees and charges,” he said.