This report finds that housing in Australia's major cities is among the least affordable in the world. It proposes that three-storey townhouses and apartments should be permitted on all residential land in all capital cities as part of a concerted policy assault on the housing crisis. Housing developments of six storeys or more should be allowed as-of-right around major transit hubs and key commercial centres.

Key findings

• Restrictive planning controls add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the cost of new housing in Australia's capital cities.
• Allowing more housing in established suburbs would mean cheaper housing in all suburbs.
• About 80% of all residential land within 30km of the centre of Sydney, and 87% in Melbourne, is zoned for housing of three storeys or fewer.
• Allowing three-storey townhouses and apartments on all residential land in capital cities would unlock commercially feasible capacity for more than one million new homes in Sydney alone.

Key recommendations

• Relax state and local government planning controls that prevent density.
• Improve consistency and certainty in approval processes.
• Fix planning governance.
• Sharpen federal incentives to the states.