Property Council's Illawarra Outlook Lunch

The Property Council's Illawarra Outlook Lunch took place this week.

Transcript

00:00 I attended the Property Council's Illawarra Outlook Lunch on Thursday.

00:05 Okay, we're here today at the Illawarra Outlook Luncheon.

00:09 A key element of that is looking at, I guess, how do we meet housing demands in Illawarra?

00:14 How do you feel we can meet those housing demands going forward?

00:17 Yeah, we have a number of issues here in Illawarra when it comes to housing.

00:21 We need more social housing, we need more rental properties,

00:25 and we need more housing for key workers as well.

00:27 The Albanese Labor Government has a suite of measures that we have prepared

00:31 through the Housing Australia Future Fund, the Accord,

00:34 and a number of other programs looking at rental assistance that we can give to people

00:38 through agreements with the states.

00:40 A number of things to help with the housing problems that we're facing here in Illawarra.

00:45 What do you think are the, I guess, what's the biggest obstacle facing, I guess, housing,

00:50 meeting housing needs? What's the biggest obstacle you think in the region?

00:53 The biggest obstacle is supply, absolutely.

00:56 We need to get more houses into the market at all price points.

01:00 So something for renters, something for first home buyers,

01:03 something for downsizers, and something for our key workers as well.

01:07 Well, look, it's definitely got to be a club-lead approach,

01:10 and it's a great opportunity that we're all talking about housing now.

01:15 And with federal, state, and local, we've got to see alignment there,

01:21 but also engaging with the industry.

01:23 And we are just not looking at an increasing population,

01:28 but we're also looking at housing for a population that is changing.

01:32 It's a population that is aging, and there is also a rise of young families

01:37 moving into the area as well.

01:39 So we must always ensure that there is housing available

01:43 at various stages of life going forward.

01:47 What's the biggest obstacle in terms of meeting the region's housing needs going forward?

01:52 I think there is a bit of a misconception about the impacts of housing.

01:58 Housing is a pillar of Australian society and has been for a long, long time.

02:03 But you never know when you need a different house as you go through your life,

02:08 and we must accept that.

02:10 The other side of housing is that it is needed to support the industries

02:14 in the Illawarra as they grow and change.

02:17 That is an area that will not stop occurring,

02:21 and we cannot have a situation where industries are struggling to go

02:26 because they can't get the skilled workers who can't find the housing that they need.

02:31 And I'm aware that this is occurring in some instances at the moment.

02:36 [no audio]