Confidence within the Western Australian housing market is showing no signs of abating, with 2/3 of people surveyed saying they intend to either buy a new home, or renovate, within the next 12 months, according to a new survey conducted by homesite.
Confidence within the Western Australian housing market is showing no signs of abating, with 2/3 of people surveyed saying they intend to either buy a new home, or renovate, within the next 12 months, according to a new survey conducted by homesite.com.au and the Housing Industry Association.
However, affordability is confirmed as the main barrier for those not currently considering purchasing a new home.
HIA's executive director Western Australia John Dastlik said that with the housing industry still powering along, it is no surprise to see a healthy level of positive sentiment towards new housing and renovation activity.
"The increase in the number of first home buyers intending to purchase a home is welcome news, as is the increase in the number of households intending to renovate in the next year," Mr Dastlik said.
"The housing affordability problem however, still looms large with the report clearly showing it to currently be the biggest barrier to homeownership. That aside, the survey provides a fascinating insight into the highs and lows of home building and renovating among Western Australian households.
"The report card for the state's builders is a good one with high levels of satisfaction among households who have had a home built or renovated, while for local councils, red tape and regulation were almost universally the biggest headache."
homesite.com.au managing director Nic Jones said, "This survey gives builders and those in the renovation industry an edge when predicting market trends. One of the many marketing virtues of the internet is the ability to collect data on consumer thinking and behaviour."
"We believe this national survey will assist those in the housing industry plan and manage future projects. I look forward to building on the strength of our relationship with the HIA."
The survey of more than 2,300 people across Western Australia revealed:
- a healthy optimism towards housing and renovation - 35 per cent have or intend to buy a brand new home over the next year. This is well above the national average of 29 per cent.
- a further 36 per cent of households surveyed have or intend to renovate their home over the next year.
- of the 23 per cent surveyed from Western Australia who intend to buy a new home over the next year, 74 per cent intend to live in it while 26 per cent intend to purchase it as an investment property.
- the average cost of renovations in Western Australia is expected to increase over the next year with those intending to renovate budgeting for between $10,000 and $20,000 - up from a reported cost of between $5,000 and10,000 for this quarter.
- of those intending to renovate, 56 per cent will be repainting. Other popular jobs were general repairs, landscaping, kitchen and bathroom makeovers.
- surfing the internet and strolling through display homes were the two most common information sources for potential new home buyers.
- many renovators considered between three and five builders before making a decision.
The online survey had more than 28,000 respondents nationally and ran for one month from March 13 to April 13 2006. Future homesite.com.au - HIA Housing Sentiment Reports will be released bi-annually.
