Sales of new homes continue to strengthen, new research shows.
The Housing Industry Association’s latest New Home Sales report shows that sales of new detached houses increased by 2.3 per cent in September compared to the previous month.
In the six months to September 2021, Western Australia led the pack, up by 46.3 per cent compared to the same period in 2019, followed by New South Wales (up 34.6 per cent). Sales fell in Queensland (down 0.8 per cent), Victoria (6.1 per cent) and South Australia (13.4 per cent).
In the six months from April to September, new home sales were 9.3 per cent above the same period in 2019 and 0.8 per cent above the same period in 2018.
On a quarterly basis too, the last three months were up by 7.4 per cent and 0.6 per cent on the same quarters in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
HIA Economist Tom Devitt suggests those are the best years for comparison, rather than 2020, as they pre-date both the pandemic and the HomeBuilder stimulus.
“These relatively strong sales will ensure that the boost in home building flows through to the second half of 2022”, Devitt said.
“When combined with the ongoing strength in renovation activity, this will continue to see high demand for skilled trades and ongoing employment opportunities in the sector into the second half of 2022”, he concluded.