This inquiry provides an examination of the Australian construction sector’s ability to deliver both detached and high-rise housing. It analyses construction workflows, markets, regulation, workforce, technologies and supply chains. The report finds there is no overarching strategy aimed at addressing housing construction constraints. It provides eight interconnected options for policymakers and industry.

Improving the performance of buildings must be a central component of any response to the challenges of climate change. This is both an imperative and an opportunity. Responding to climate change by aggressively improving the performance of the built environment will produce buildings that are superior in virtually every capacity, and focus attention on an...

Motivated by discontent with the quality, design, and cost of speculative multi-unit housing provision in Australia, households and professionals alike are increasingly seeking alternatives. Recent years have seen an increase in the number and university of households seeking to collectively self-develop multi-unit housing in our inner cities. Housing projects have formed from ground-up movements, professional...

Higher density multi-unit residential developments, such as townhouses and apartment buildings (henceforth ‘higher density housing’), have become an increasingly common feature of Australian cities. Across the country, 2016 marked the first time when construction began on more higher density housing than detached houses. New South Wales (NSW) already passed this milestone some years ago, and...

This report on the building scale considers the most important issues in both individual dwellings (e.g. apartments) and higher density buildings as a whole, and how these can influence the quality of life of lower income and vulnerable residents.