12 September 2025

In this Edition...

1. Long Bay would go a long way to addressing long term housing supply

2. Minns Government gets behind Build-to-Rent

3. Planning Minister declares another 7,700 potential homes as State Significant

...and much, much more.

4. Metro and heavy rail extensions in southwest Sydney should be a short-term priority
5. CBRE – apartment demand outstripping supply
6. Victorian Government releases its version of transport-oriented development plans
7. Victoria goes full on YIMBY with 10-day turnaround for subdivisions and second homes
8. $400,000 in government fees, taxes and charges per apartment - Meriton
9. Goodman lodges State Significant Development application for industrial development at Horsley Park
10. Council watch
11. Kiama by election: “we need housing, but…”
12. Treasurers back in productivity boosting reforms
13. Modern Methods of construction - a spotlight on the future
14. Building Commission issues guidance over certification of a “group home”
15. Sydney Water updates
16. Spotlight on excellence - Best high-rise metro development
17. Members in the news

1. Long Bay would go a long way to addressing long term housing supply

The NSW Opposition last weekend committed to transforming Long Bay gaol at Malabar into a residential precinct that could accommodate up to 12,000 new homes. 30% of the new homes will be a mix of social and affordable stock. 

Like the Government’s recent Woollahra station announcement, Long Bay is a long-term plan – but it shows the Opposition is starting to weigh into the housing supply debate and come up with these types of proposals.

So, the Opposition has matched the Woollahra station proposal and now raised the stakes with a plan for Long Bay.

Urban Taskforce has long called for Long Bay to be repurposed as housing. When the Rosehill Gardens proposal fell over, we said that Sydney just didn’t need a “Plan B”, but Plans B, C, D through to X, Y and Z.

The Opposition’s plan is a logical move given the south-east’s existing employment, education, and health infrastructure. And it opens up discussions around extending the western metro to the south east, As Acting CEO of Urban Taskforce, Stephen Fenn, commented:

There is an opportunity now for the Minns Government to back in this proposal. More bipartisanship on housing supply opportunities can only be a positive. 

2. Minns Government gets behind Build-to-Rent

Indi Sydney by INVESTA- winner of this year’s Urban Taskforce best BTR development

The Minns Government this week delivered on its budget commitment this week with the introduction of the Land Tax (Build-to-Rent) Amendment Bill 2025.

Announced in the 2025-26 Budget, the initiative means that developers of BTR will be able to access a land tax concession indefinitely, rather than maintaining the previous end date of 2039. The Bill provides for the following:

• A 50 per cent reduction in the assessable land value of eligible build-to-rent properties with no cap on the number of years owners can apply for the concession,
• Eligibility requirements, including that construction must have commenced on or after 1 July 2020 and the building has not been used for any other purpose, and
• A prohibition on subdividing BTR, or otherwise having ownership divided, within the first 15 years of accessing the concession.

This is a sensible, pragmatic reform which will give developers and investors greater certainty over the long term, rather than pricing in a concession that would expire in 14 years.

In introducing the Bill, Minister for Planning, Paul Scully MP talked up the benefits of BTR when it came to supply and choice:

NSW is seeing a surge in interest, which means it is quickly catching up to Queensland but still a long way behind Victoria.

BDO’s 2025 BTR report, published in August 2025, highlights the explosive growth in the pipeline – a total of 39,300 apartments across 113 projects, with a combined capital value of  $ 30.1 billion. This alone is a  35% increase over the past year (up from 29,100 units previously).

The NSW reforms will only help the BTR pipeline by creatingmore long-term certainty when it comes to investing in this important part of NSW housing supply pipeline.

3. Planning Minister declares another 7,700 potential homes as State Significant

The HDA met late last month and recommended a further 29 projects for declaration at State Significant under the HDA pathway.

This pathway is now the gold standard when it comes to meeting the challenges of the housing supply crisis.

This week the Minister for Planning, Paul Scully’s declared 26 HDA-recommended projects as State Significant Development to be assessed through the Housing Delivery Authority State Significant pathway.

The number of new homes that could potentially be delivered through this pathway is mounting – 240 projects since February - which all up could deliver 86,700 potential homes.

The numbers are growing and momentum building.

We are starting to see a mix of housing typologies – infill through to greenfield, as well as proposals in regional NSW.

Acting Urban Taskforce Chief Executive, Stephen Fenn, noted the recommendation by the HDA of Walker’s Appin 2,500 home proposal, saying it demonstrated the need for both infill and greenfield housing supply to solve housing supply and affordability crisis

Walker Corporation’s chief executive, David Gallant, welcomed the fast track HDA process as a boon for critical stand-alone housing in Sydney’s growing southwest:

The HDA contiunues to prove its worth in in eliciting shovel-ready projects where the market says it is feasible to build.

Since it first met in February 2025 to assess Expressions of Interest, 85 Secretary Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) have been issued and 7 DAs lodged.

The challenge now will be converting this potential housing into actual, through housing commencements and completions.

4. Metro and heavy rail extensions in southwest Sydney should be a short-term priority

What started out as a leaked long term transport plan for Sydney gained some short-term traction by the end of the week, with Transport Minister John Graham telling the SMH that extensions to rail lines south of the new Western Sydney airport would be a priority if the business cases stacked up.

These business cases cover potential extensions of the Western Sydney Airport metro line northwards from St Marys to Tallawong, joining up with the M1 metro line, and importantly south from Bradfield to join the T8 rail line at Macarthur. It is reported that are due to be completed by early 2026.

Urban Taskforce has consistently argued that the new airport should be linked with Sydney’s southwest – extending the metro to Bradfield South with an interchange to heavy rail through to Leppington and Glenfield would be logical and represent good value for money. Linking the new airport to Glenfield would create closer links between the east and the west and better connect the new airport with Kingsford Smith. Extending the metro right through to Campbelltown via Oran Park would be a further boon to these growing communities.

While the Minns Government has talked down the opportunities for new metros – it is time for the Commonwealth to roll up its sleeves and get involved. It has already helped to fund corridor acquisitions, but more support is required for one of the nation’s economic powerhouses.

Equally important is the electrification of the T8 south line through to Wilton, which would deliver transport infrastructure to underpin housing and jobs in the greater southwest.

The south west is booming. What it needs now is a bit of help in terms of housing enabling and employment creating infrastructure. 

The leaked transport plan is a very good start.

5. CBRE – apartment demand outstripping supply

Feasibility and values not keeping pace with construction costs were key factors leading to an ongoing falling away of apartment construction in Sydney according to a recent CBRE report.

CBRE’s Pacific Head of Research Sameer Chopra notes apartment values have not kept pace with construction costs over the past five years with the disparity sitting at 20%, which makes the existing stock of apartments an attractive market for investors.

The outlook was grim, with Mr Chopra expecting that in Sydney, apartment delivery would average 11,700 per year across 2025 to 2030 - well below the estimated demand of 30,000 for total housing stock. The vacancy rate is set to fall from 2.0% to 1.2%.

Nationally, around 60,000 apartments are expected to be delivered each year from 2025 to 2030, while Australia’s forecast population growth will require an apartment supply of approximately 75,000 per year to avoid further falls in vacancy rates.

CBRE has amended its national apartment supply forecasts downwards.

Not good for rents. Not good for the price of housing. Not good for supply, and definitely not good news for the National Housing Accord.

6. Victorian Government releases its version of transport-oriented development plans

Victoria may have their fair share of challenges, but they really are getting on with the housing supply game.

This week Premier Jacinta Allan, and her Planning Minister, Sonja Kilkenny, released draft maps showing proposed heights and boundaries for 25 of 50 new Train and Tram Zone Activity Centres.

The plans underpin the Government’s intentions to deliver 300,000 well located new homes by 2051.

The Victorian Government has made a key delineation between "core" and "catchment" areas around these centres.

In the core areas, adjacent to train stations and tram corridors, heights of up to 16 stories are envisaged. Importantly, the Government says that eligible buildings across the core will be ‘deemed to comply’ with planning rules and be exempt from VCAT review.

This is an important distinction and is something the Minns Government needs to look at in terms of its TOD Tier 2 program. The retention of restrictive local planning controls (heritage, setbacks, solar and overshadowing etc) is a significant obstacle to new housing in the TODs.

Right now, the rate of development applications being lodged in the TOD precincts is extremely low. It is time for the Government to review the policy. Feasibility and de risking proposals is key.

Complying development and the overriding of local planning controls is critical if the TODs are do their fair share of the heavy lifting when it comes to new well-located housing in these precincts.

7. Victoria goes full on YIMBY with 10-day turnaround for subdivisions and second homes

In another big week for Victoria, the Premier Jacinta Allan backed up her transport-oriented development policy with streamlined planning laws to encourage homeowners who want to build a second dwelling on their block, or  subdivide and sell.

New streamlined planning rules will come into effect in October to fast-track these approvals – reducing wait times for the process from more than 60 days to just 10 business days.

Victoria introduced its townhouse and low-rise reforms in March 2025 and has taken a uniform, state-driven approach to subdivision reforms.

Key elements include allowing dual occupancies and up to two dwellings per lot “as of right” in most residential zones without needing planning permits. The reforms streamline approvals through a "code assessment" pathway, limiting third-party objections and speeding up development.

The reforms also reduce minimum lot sizes and introduce new precinct-based zones (Housing Choice and Transport Zone) with tailored building height limits designed to foster medium-density housing around activity centres and transport hubs.

Victoria's new Townhouse and Low-Rise Code replaced the older ResCode, providing more precise, codified provisions that enhance clarity and predictability for medium-density projects.

Industry is rightfully concerned about the complexity and inconsistency of NSW’s framework, which can delay projects despite the reforms' intention to speed up housing supply.

Victoria’s state-mandated, code-based reforms prioritise clarity and speed, helping to accelerate suburb-scale development and medium-density housing, with fewer hurdles for developers. NSW’s reform provides too much local discretion at the cost of more complex and less predictable processes, potentially slowing housing growth.

And one has only to gaze across the Tasman to see the potential of such changes.   The Auckland Unitary Plan, approved in November 2016, dramatically upzoned much of Auckland to enable denser residential development.

It introduced Mixed Housing Suburban and Mixed Housing Urban zones, where two dwellings per site were permitted “as of right”.

Housing supply increased significantly, adding tens of thousands of new dwellings. One estimate notes around 20,000 additional homes over five years, while another cites 43,500 more building starts compared to expected levels.

Rents grew more slowly, particularly at the lower quartile, leading to improved affordability. From 2016 to 2023, rents rose only 29%, while household incomes climbed 47%—resulting in the median rent-to-income ratio dropping from 22.7% in 2016 to 19.4% in 2023 - outperforming the national average.

And the last time we looked, Auckland had plenty of character!

8. $400,000 in government fees, taxes and charges per apartment - Meriton

The Australian article referred to the recent research paper by Urban Taskforce showed that on average, a developer faces a cumulative bill of $346,000 per apartment. Greenfield developers paying an extraordinary $576,000 for every house and land package sold.

The comparison with Brisbane and Melbourne, based on analysis by the Centre for International Economics, is striking:

Urban Taskforce, What makes housing so expensive? April 2025

If you ever wondered why it is difficult to bring housing online in NSW and why we are faced with a housing supply crisis - look no further than the seemingly endless array of fees, taxes,and other charges that are whacked onto the cost of apartments and houses in NSW.

9. Goodman lodges State Significant Development application for industrial development at Horsley Park

Goodman’s State Significant Development application for the site at 2-10 Old Wallgrove Road Horsley Park is on exhibition until the end of September. 

The proposal is for three buildings totalling more than 90,000 sq metres in floor space. The location is key, with 4 million Sydneysiders able to be reached with in an hour's drive of the precinct.

It comes on the same week as the reporting of Goodman's purchase of a 196 hectare land parcel near Western Sydney Airport - the former PGH quarry and brick manufacturing site, for $575 million. Goodman plans to develope the site as a logistics and business park. Watch this space!

Industrial and commercial development is critical to the health of the NSW economy, ensuring that we not only generate jobs but also enhance service and goods delivery across the Sydney basin. Important building blocks for a growing Sydney. 

10. Council watch

Mosman:  We need more housing … elsewhere…

Continuing with its apparent philosophy that “accepting new housing is something that other people do”, the good burghers at Mosman Council are pulling out all stops to prevent the great unwashed from darkening their doorsteps. 

Mirth aside, significant decisions are being made on the basis of the LMR reforms. The Minns Government needs to give Mosman and their NIMBY politics the shortest of shrifts!

This attempt to make the municipality a virtual walled community has taken a new turn with a couple of key actions. 

The first one saw councillors unanimously passing a motion on 2 September, which: 

• called on the State Government to put its low- and medium-rise housing policy on hold while the council prepares an “Alternative Plan” for development within Mosman Council, through a workshop of councillors and staff; and
• proposed to draft an Amicus Curiae brief to the Land and Environment Court in support of one individual’s case against the State Government’s policy. 

Urban Taskforce has written to Planning Minister Paul Scully MP raising concerns about this attempt to thwart these reforms, which would greatly impact those who have bought in the area with a view to delivering more housing. 

The active intervention of the Council in a pending court case was also raised as a cause for concern, given that ratepayer money is being spent on driving the barbarians from the gate (although ironically much of the new housing will be taken by locals wanting to downsize).

Mosman has one of the highest average residential rates in the State at $1,533.11 (even beating Woollahra, North Sydney, and Sydney), almost $500 more than the State average.

So, the Council is choosing to spend ratepayer funds on strategies to prevent growth that will only serve to increase their residents' rates. 

A lose-lose scenario.

The second initiative of Council was to support a resident petition on the State planning changes. 

The petition – titled “Spit Bridge Gridlock Needs a Solution” – urges the Government to: 

• review the Spit Bridge and Spit Road/Military Road corridor’s capacity to absorb significant additional traffic that will result from increased housing density as a result of the planning reforms; and
• exempt or defer planning reforms for affected councils that meet or exceed their mandated housing targets so traffic and infrastructure needs can be assessed before further development proceeds.”

The petition’s central aim is to exempt or defer reforms for councils who meet or exceed their mandated housing targets. 

But this is where it’s not so helpful for Mosman, because the Council is a long way from meeting any housing targets. 

Mosman was asked to deliver a very modest 500 dwellings as part of the National Housing Accord. 

In the first year of the Accord, it approved (drumroll, please)… 48.  That’s less than half of what was needed. 

In July of this year, it stepped up its game and approved a grand total of … 2 dwellings. 

In fact, in the first 13 months of the Accord, it’s delivered as many homes as … Bellingen or Dungog.  Griffith has approved more than three times as many. 

In fact, Goulburn Council approved more homes just in July than Mosman has in 13 months! 

At this rate, Mosman will never meet or exceed mandated housing targets, so even if the petition is successful, it won’t apply. 

Mosman Council encapsulates the privilege, entitlement and faux exceptionalism that is the hallmark of NIMBYism. They enjoy the prosperity of a world class city like Sydney, revel in their high amenity, but are hell-bent on not having to share this with “outsiders”.

The State Government needs to stare down this entitled view of the world. 

Woollahra – more gnashing of teeth over Woollahra Station plans

Woollahra Council is up to old tricks by saying the new Woollahra Council is a “gift” to the development community, notwithstanding comments at the AFR Property Summit that delivering housing around the new station would be a Herculean task.^#

The Woollahra Mayor was not letting the facts get in the way of a scare campaign:

Memo to Mayor: best to tend to your own homework - if it doesn’t stack up for developers, there will be no housing. But we guess that is the plan!

11. Kiama by election: “we need housing, but…”

The Minns Government has set Kiama LGA a target of 900 new homes for the five-year Accord period. For the first 12 months of the Accord, Kiama Council approved just 68 dwellings – which doesn’t fill us with confidence that things will change.

The Teal candidate was interviewed by the Daily Telegraph’s James O’Doherty on the eve of the by-election and asked about housing. The response was the classic “we need housing, but…”

12. Treasurers back in productivity boosting reforms

While big picture tax reform seems to have taken a back seat, the nation’s Treasurers (is there a collective noun?) met this week to advance key economic reforms following the Albanese Government’s Roundtable last month.

Besides agreeing to pausing the National Construction Code, the meeting agreed to pursue several areas of reform which would benefit construction and housing supply:

• Progress recognition of international standards and harmonise state standards to identify opportunities in key sectors like building and construction.
• Establish a national licence scheme for electrical tradespeople.
• Identify regulatory overlap and barriers to faster approvals, working with the Commonwealth’s Investor Front Door to unlock projects of national significance in priority areas like housing and energy.
• Accelerate efforts to reduce duplication in approval processes.
• Increase uptake of prefabricated housing, including through exploring how Commonwealth and state and territory governments can use procurement to provide a stable source of demand for the industry.

13. Modern Methods of construction - a spotlight on the future

Urban Taskforce attended the launch of the NSW Government backed Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Program.

The Program is looking at how to diversify construction through modular manufacturing to minimise much of the onsite delay. 

A showcase of this research was launched today by the NSW Minister for Housing, the Hon Rose Jackson MLC, who said that she was excited about the project and the potential opportunities for affordable housing offered by this new approach. 

The CRC is looking to speed up construction timelines through the use of offsite manufacturing, helping to increase cost-effectiveness and quality assurance, and improving sustainability by improving materials and reducing waste. 

The focus of the Program is a “kit-of-parts” approach, which allows scalability and efficiency in the manufacture of different elements, and opens supply opportunities up to a broader array of companies. 

Exhibits at the showcase describe how the program works and demonstrate different aspects of modular housing. 

There is even a sample apartment built through the MMC Program that shows a glimpse of what future construction using this method might look like. 

Information about the various elements of the Program were printed on boards around the perimeter of the event, copies of which are available here. 

The showcase will be open to the public on Friday, 19 September, 2025, from 10am to 1pm. 

For more information about the Program, visit the Building 4.0 CRC website. 

14. Building Commission issues guidance over certification of a “group home”  

In the Standard Instrument, a group home is defined as a type of residential accommodation providing temporary or permanent accommodation for people with a disability or people that are socially disadvantaged.  

An important feature of group homes is that they are occupied by multiple people as a single household.  

 The guidance is available online through the following links:

1. Practice advice for certifiers | NSW Government
2. Guidance to assist the certification of ‘group homes’ | NSW Government

The guidance highlights considerations for certifiers to help them make evidence-based assessment decisions. It also discusses the types of evidence that may be considered by the Building Commission when auditing the certification of these projects.

15. Sydney Water updates

Outcomes report on Aerotropolis

The results of the public consultation on the Aerotropolis Draft Integrated Stormwater Scheme Plans for the Wianamatta, Badgerys, and Cosgroves Creek areas that was held from March to May this year. 

112 formal submissions were received and 92 individual landowner meetings conducted as part of the engagement, and the authority fielded questions about implications for landholders and future development. 

Sydney Water is working through the feedback and reviewing infrastructure locations.  It will release final plans in late 2025, which will underpin the proposed Development Servicing Plans (DSPs), including infrastructure costs and developer contributions. 

Consultation on the DSPs will occur in early 2026.

Consultation on Duncans Mulgoa stormwater servicing

A draft scheme for Duncans Mulgoa has been released to discuss strategies for stormwater management and recycling in the area. 

The consultation page has a copy of the guide to the scheme, an interactive map to see where proposed infrastructure might be located, and a discussion of the types of infrastructure likely to be used. 

Submissions are due by Friday, 19 September 2025.  

16. Spotlight on excellence | Best high-rise metro development

ALAND’s “Paramount on Parkes” at Harris Park took out this year’s Urban Development Excellence Award’s Best High Rise Metro Development.

Another ground-breaking development by ALAND.

Andrew Hrsto and the ALAND team after the win

17. Members in the news

*Please note these articles may be paywall protected

“… Developer, Aqualand, which has made a state significant development application for the project, says the building will offer “high quality rental apartments (and) expansive views of Sydney Harbour” towards the city skyline…
... read more …

Mosman Daily, 5 September

"… Toga managing director Allan Vidor said there was strong ongoing buyer interest in the project. “We have long been advocates of Macquarie Park,” he said, noting that Toga will have built 1,000 apartments in the area once Macquarie Rise is complete. Mr Vidor said it was “a thriving precinct”
… read more ...                      

realestate.com.au, 9 September

“… Urban Property Group has announced the launch of ESTE, an exclusive oceanfront residential project in Sydney’s coastal enclave of Little Bay, just 14 kilometres from the CBD…
... read more ...

Build Australia, 8 September

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