Big bank boss: GC appeal through the roof
ANZ boss Shayne Elliott has warned there are no easy answers to the housing crisis gripping the Gold Coast.
The big-four bank CEO says he “can’t see” any reason why demand for the city’s property, which is already at a premium, would drop as people migrate north to Queensland in search of lifestyle and opportunities.
Speaking at the Home of the Arts (HOTA) on Tuesday, he said more would need to be done to solve the ciris.
“I cannot see why demand, left to its own devices, would drop, who would not want to come here?” he said.
“Within Australia there has been a general drift north and the Gold Coast is new, it has the facilities, the roads are good and the park provisions are good, as are the sporting facilities.
“This will continue to mean that this part of the world and the Gold Coast will be attractive. ”
Mr Elliott said it would take “radical changes” to solve the issue.
“The problem is not that we cannot build things, the problem is the cost of building. It has become extraordinarily high and a lot of it has to do with government charges and taxes and commodity prices,” he said.
“This will continue to be a massive problem with the county will need radical policy changes and thinking if we want to do something about this.
“We have to because we do not have a choice, we have to grow, this part of the world needs more infrastructure, housing, renewable energy and more projects.
“They need people to build them.”
It comes after new data was released last week showing the Gold Coast had recorded the highest house rental prices in the country, exceeding Sydney and Brisbane by $100 and $225 a week respectively.
The Rent Report found the median weekly prices was $845, $45 higher than it had been the previous month.
New research by real estate firm Colliers International released in February warned there was a “lack of trust” in developers being able to deliver projects and rapidly dropping stock levels.
High construction costs, material shortages, interest rate rises and a lack of tradies have slowed the construction sector in the past 18 months, while the city’s population growth has only accelerated.
The 2023 Gold Coast Dwelling Supply Study, released last year, warned a large number of the houses proposed for the Gold Coast are unlikely to ever get built for economic reasons and other solutions will be needed to ensure housing catches up with the population growth.
Mr Elliott said the Gold Coast faced a “wickedly complex situation of becoming unaffordable
“Given the scale of the challenge, a few tweaks here or there won’t solve it – it will need a big policy response,” he said.
“It doesn’t feel like you have solve it with a few tax changes. It must be comprehensive.”
On fixing the housing supply crisis Given the scale of the challenge, a few tweaks here or there won’t solve it – it will need a big policy response
ANZ CEO Shayne Elliott