Call for restoration of $ 5000 boost to First Home Owners’ Grant Builders doing it tough
THE construction industry is calling for more recognition by governments of the difficulties in home- building markets as approval figures show regional centres continue to languish.
In regional Queensland, only Mackay Whitsundays has shown substantial growth.
But even in this market, fuelled by a recovery in coal mining, Master Builders Queensland warned the rise in building approvals – up 72 per SHARES in troubled discount retailer The Reject Shop have jumped more than 14 per cent following a $ 78 million takeover bid that the company has deemed “opportunistic”.
The Reject Shop says it will consider yesterday’s offer from Allensford, the bidding vehicle of Raphael Geminder’s Kin Group, but has urged its shareholders not to sell before it digests the news and makes a recommendation.
Reject Shop shares rose 14.4 per cent to $ 2.78 following the news. Allensford appointed its broker Bell Potter to purchase Reject Shop shares through to January 7 at $ 2.70 per share – a 19 per cent premium to the one- month volume weighted average price of $ 2.27. cent to 573 in the year to September – came from a small base.
In North Queensland, based on Townsville, approvals fell 26.6 per cent to 656, while Cairns showed marginal growth of 0.3 per cent to 1477.
Approvals fell at the Gold Coast (- 0.5 per cent), Sunshine Coast (- 15.2 per cent), Downs & Western (- 18.4 per cent), Wide Bay Burnett (- 7.6 per cent) and Central Queensland (- 30 per cent).
Greater Brisbane rose 8 per cent to 25,170. Master Builders Queensland deputy CEO Paul Bidwell said the State Government needed to restore the $ 5000 boost to the $ 15,000 First Home Owners’ Grant, cut in July, and remove the added cost of the looming waste levy, estimated to add $ 1500 to home costs from July next year.
“The boost was a vital tool for first- home buyers to get a foot in the door of the housing market. Without it, home ownership has been put even fur- ther out of reach,” Mr Bidwell said.
“Many regional Master Builders say the boost was an essential part of their business model, describing the cut as a ‘ tough blow’, that their business was ‘ really struggling’ and that new buyers were ‘ noticeably dropping off’.”
Mr Bidwell said the industry hoped the Government would restore the $ 5000 boost as part of next month’s midyear budget review and further delay the introduction of the waste levy Townsville home builders say a tightening in rental vacancy rates and employment growth point to an improving market but that view is not shared by all.
Mr Bidwell said regional builders were concerned about the prospects for 2019.
Housing Industry Association regional director John Futer said that while the Townsville home building market remained a “bit stagnant”, the outlook was much better.