The property industry has welcomed the federal government decision to extend the HomeBuilder program and commencement times by a further 18 months.
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Housing Industry Association managing director Graham Wolfe said the uptake of HomeBuilder had created a lifeline of work for tradies and helped support tens of thousands of first-home buyers to achieve their dream of owning a home.
"Yet members have been severely impacted by global supply constraints and labour pressures. Builders and their clients have also been juggling delays in finance approvals, planning and building approvals and land title."
Mr Wolfe said the decision to extend the start time by a further 12 months from the current six month requirement reflected the government's commitment to support builders and streamline the delivery of the more than 120,000 homes and renovations now taking advantage of the grant.
"The good work that HomeBuilder has done to stimulate the economy and retain jobs will be fully realised. Builders can now continue progressing the contracts they have in an orderly way," he said.
"HomeBuilder had an immediate impact from the day it was announced.
"It has injected confidence in the housing industry - for builders, trade contractors, manufacturers, suppliers and into the retail sector - at a time when hundreds of thousands of jobs were at risk."
The extension comes as new data shows new home sales rose almost 40 per cent in the March quarter compared to the same time last year.
The construction industry wants the federal government to continue to back the sector as it puts the finishing touches to next month's highly anticipated federal budget.
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Mr Kelly said now that the virus has been 'caught and managed' in Australia, it's time to start examining key issues fundamental to Australia's 10-year horizon.
Council budget 2021-22:
The REIA federal budget submission includes calls to address the deposit gap for first-home buyers and making property taxation incentives fairer.
The organisation has previously raised the topic of making interest rates for first-home buyers tax deductible against an appropriate cap as one measure of support.
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