The Property Council has welcomed Federal Budget funding of $54 million for advanced manufacturing of prefabricated and modular homes and Help to Buy scheme expansion.
The government announced $49.3 million to grow the prefab and modular housing industry alongside a $4.7 million investment in a voluntary national certification process for offsite construction to streamline approvals.
Property Council Chief Executive Mike Zorbas said with low productivity and high construction costs hampering the building industry, modular and prefabricated housing can play a role in creating more affordable housing supply.
"Alongside planning reform and more skilled workers, boosting prefabricated and modular home construction hits the innovation sweet spot," Mr Zorbas said.
"Now is the time to back in housing innovation. It is less than a month since the Productivity Commission showed we build half as many homes per hour as we did in 1995.
"Prefabricated and modular homes can be built to consistently high standards, faster and with strong sustainability and safety credentials.
"To achieve the scale of supply Australia needs, the sector needs a consistent demand pipeline and a supportive regulatory environment.
"This funding will lift the sustainable pipeline of work, giving innovative public and private investors further confidence to expand production.
"The Federal government is already working with state counterparts to reduce regulatory barriers in the sector, and a certification process to streamline approvals is the icing on top."
The Property Council also welcomed the expansion of the Help to Buy shared equity scheme.
"Measures like Help to Buy get thousands of Australians into housing faster," Mr Zorbas said.
"Increasing the income and price caps will accelerate more first home buyers through the deposit gap," he said.
