Squeeze up a little, we have to make room for new arrivals
Modest increase in density means we don’t have to move to the fringes,
AFFORDABLE home ownership is a cornerstone of Tasmanian life and prosperity. It is the single biggest contributor to the wealth creation of lower and middle income families, a springboard to self-sufficiency, and is perhaps the single most effective way of reducing poverty and dependency in the community.
The rate of home ownership in Hobart is amongst the highest of any capital city, and the opportunity to purchase a home at an affordable price has been a major drawcard for people choosing to move here. So much so that interstate migration in the past few years has seen more people move to Tasmania from the mainland than leave.
This is marked turnaround on the trend over the past two decades, and has come with significant benefits for the local economy and community.
I am one of these recent interstate migrants, and made the decision to move to Hobart because it is a fair and affordable place to live.
However, despite a significant increase in total residential building approvals in the past year, new housing supply has not kept pace with population growth and is putting pressure on house prices.
This is not just a problem for the building industry, it’s a threat to the aspiration of home ownership and to our standard of living. The problem, in short, is simply that we are not building enough houses to keep pace with demand.
This is true across the spectrum of housing needs in the community.
The housing shortage is putting additional pressure on community service providers and the Government to provide social and public housing.
It has raised the likelihood of homelessness for those most affected by higher housing and rental prices, and it is making it harder for those looking to enter the housing market and start growing wealth of their own.
It is not simply up to government to solve this problem. But government does need to support industry to deliver on the growing housing needs of the community. This is true whether we are talking about accommodation for homeless people, social housing or new houses for those looking to call Tasmania home.
The State Government has put a plan in place to improve the delivery of social and affordable housing. Phase two of the affordable housing action plan will help deliver more homes to those who most need them in the community. It is a sensible plan, supported by industry, which considers the current capacity of the construction sector to deliver on set targets.
By the Government’s own admission, the plan does not solve the challenges of housing affordability on its own, but it is realistic and it will make a positive difference.
I have spoken to a lot of builders around the state in the past few months and one consistent aggravation which comes up when asked why we are not building enough houses is the approach to
planning and development from local governments. This is particularly true in urban areas where the housing affordability challenge is greatest.
The Hobart City Council took the step to call a housing and homelessness emergency.
No one would refute the fact that we must do better to provide housing options for those most in need and give more Tasmanians the option to own their own home.
But the same people who agree that we need to do more to increase the supply of housing are the ones getting in the way of sensible inner-city housing developments. We can’t have it both ways and, as a community, a decision must be made as to what type of city we want Hobart to be.
Do we want to give access to the growing number of Tasmanians who want to live in inner city Hobart, or do we want to exclude the majority of ordinary Tasmanians from this privilege?
Do we want a planning and zoning system which is geared towards sensible developments which tackle the housing shortage and help housing affordability, or do we want to stifle development, reduce supply and push up house prices in areas where people most want to live?
Do we want to allow for moderate increases in density which mean more people can live close to where they work and socialise, or do we want to push people out to the city fringes, put greater demand on infrastructure and increase the environmental footprint of Hobart? The approach that the local government takes to planning and development will ultimately dictate the type of city we build for the future.
There is no reason why we cannot make Hobart a more accessible, affordable and sustainable city and still preserve the heritage which makes our capital city unique.
I moved here because Hobart is a fairer and more affordable place to live than capital cities on the mainland.
It has a unique culture and a sense of community which comes from an accessibility to inner city living without needing to be on a six-figure salary. It would be a shame if we lost this by creating an artificial barrier which reduces supply in areas where people most want to live.