New home completions in WA have slipped to their lowest level in almost two years, magnifying calls for the state to pause major infrastructure projects and focus on boosting housing supply.
New home completions in WA have slipped to their lowest level in almost two years, magnifying calls for the state to pause major infrastructure projects and focus on boosting housing supply.
Data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed just 4,441 homes were completed in WA during the December quarter; down 13.5 per cent on the previous quarter and the lowest since the 4,401 built in June 2024.
It's the fewest homes completed in WA in a quarter since the National Housing Accord, which set WA's aspirational building target of 130,000 homes, was agreed in mid-2024.
It was the fourth consecutive quarter with a reduction in home completions.
Shadow treasurer and housing minister Sandra Brewer said the real value of non-residential public works under construction showed the state government had "misplaced" priorities.
According to the ABS data, that figure jumped 33 per cent in the December quarter; overtaking private sector non-residential works for the first time since 2017.
"Whilst (the) Treasurer is happy to use taxpayer funds on a film studio, water amusement park and a racetrack at Burswood, WA families are feeling the pain of ever-rising housing costs, due to her misplaced priorities," Ms Brewer said.
"How can you build a home, when the Treasurer Rita Saffioti employs all the workers and takes all the materials for what she wants?
"Until this government gets its priorities right, housing supply will continue to fall and the crisis will only get worse."
Ms Brewer also slammed the pace of social housing construction, with 108 social homes completed against a wait list of 23,120 people.
"The Housing Minister can deflect all he likes, but the reality is this crisis sits squarely with him," she said.
"The Premier cannot continue to ignore this - leadership means taking responsibility when your government is failing.
"For only 108 social homes to be built in a three-month period is appalling, at a time when people are desperately seeking a roof over their head."
The shadow treasurer's comments were echoed by Property Council WA executive director Nicola Brischetto, who said WA continued to slip further behind its National Housing Accord target.
"We anticipate this figure will only get worse, as the fuel disruptions, chronic labour shortages and rising material costs flow through to the numbers of new homes being built," she said.
"Prior to the Middle East conflict, our members were reporting that construction costs were showing signs of stabilisation. hopes of that stabilisation holding are now fading fast.
"The Property Council, along with other industry bodies and the WA Government, are closely monitoring the impacts of the Middle East conflict on the residential construction sector. If the crisis continues, the government will need to take a more aggressive action to ensure home completions don't fall further behind."
Despite the figures, Ms Brischetto said there was encouraging news in the form of an uptick in dwelling commencements in the state, with construction beginning on 4500 more homes in 2025 than in 2024.
The most recent National Housing Supply and Affordability Council quarterly report, which relied on completions data from the September quarter, said WA, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory were leading the National Housing Accord target metrics.
According to that report, WA has built approximately 22 per cent of its total Accord target; and is on track to hit its target in September 2029.
That's three months behind schedule—but still ahead of all other states and territories except Victoria and the ACT, which are also expected to hit their targets in September 2029.
Nationally, some 219,000 homes had been completed in the five quarters since the Accord started—18.25 per cent of the 1.2 million target.
HIA Senior Economist Tom Devitt said home building activity picked up in late-2025 on the back of declining interest rates and low unemployment.
"With interest rates on the way back up, the task of increasing supply will depend on governments reducing the cost of delivering new homes to market in other ways," he said.
"Recent discussion around increasing capital gains tax on investors and winding back negative gearing is pointing the conversation in precisely the wrong direction.
"The logic that taxing investors in the established market will force investors to build new homes is flawed. New housing becomes existing housing. Investors in new housing supply will know that they will effectively incur such a tax when they sell their property, deterring them from investing in that new supply in the first place, even though the tax was directed at the established market."
Mr Devitt's policy calls were backed by Master Builders chief executive Denita Wawn, who said the upcoming Federal Budget provided an opportunity to expedite the delivery of the Accord target.
"The policy measures in the budget must be holistic and must stimulate an increase in all construction including new housing supply through a range of programs, tax settings and workforce growth," she said.
Ms Wawn called for increases to the instant asset write-off; an accelerated depreciation for capital works; and a streamlined National Construction Code.
