The importance of Federal Government’s $25,000 grant to people building new homes has been emphasised by research which shows the dramatic multiplier impact of the housing construction industry.
Residential estates across Australia have been reporting big increases in inquiry and sales levels since the announcement of the HomeBuilder package in early June.
The new grant, coupled with existing federal and state incentives, means first-home buyers in particular can receive a massive boost in getting into a new home, helped also by ultra low interest rates.
Research by the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation has found that residential construction has the second highest economic multiplier effect on the Australian economy.
The research shows that nine jobs are supported across the economy for every $1 million spent on residential construction.
NHFIC chief executive Nathan Dal Bon says this means that every new home built generates an average of three jobs throughout a range of industries, based on the average dwelling construction cost.
“Understanding how residential construction activity may affect jobs and flow through to the broader economy is increasingly important and timely, given the impact of COVID-19,” he says.
The Building Jobs report found that $1 million of output in residential construction supports around $2.9 million of industry output and consumption across the broader economy.
The employment impact on construction services such as plumbing, electrical, bricklaying and carpentry is almost four times that of any other industry connected to the residential construction industry, the report found.