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The federal government's HomeBuilder scheme has boosted the activity from the first-home buyer segment in Tasmania.
Housing Minister Michael Sukkar said the number of Tasmanians who have taken advantage of the scheme is three times higher than the initial projections.
“HomeBuilder was designed immediately to inject confidence and encourage buyers back into the market to offset the devastating effects of the pandemic on the residential construction industry, and on all counts, it has delivered," he said.
Sukkar said the latest numbers on loans and dwelling approvals reflect the boost the HomeBuilder has given to the local housing market.
The number of owner-occupier loans for construction has risen by 104.2% over the three months to January 2021. During the same period, the number of detached dwelling approvals rose by 60.6%.
Sukkar said the HomeBuilder scheme is also helping the local economy.
"Thanks to HomeBuilder, Tasmania’s tradies can look ahead and plan with confidence in 2021. Every one of the 2,636 HomeBuilder applications received from Tasmanians to date represents a signed contract, which means more work in the pipeline, keeping Tassie tradies on the tools and in a job," he said.
Senator Claire Chandler said the scheme is part of the federal government's commitment to increase the supply of dwellings in Tasmania.
“We all want more young Tasmanians to have the opportunity to live and work in our state rather than going to the mainland, and ensuring housing supply caters to demand is essential to this achieving this," she said.
Furthermore, she said the extension of the HomeBuilder until the end of this month ensures a steady pipeline of construction activity through 2022.
“HomeBuilder is just one way this Government is supporting jobs and stimulating economic growth in Tasmania to assist with our economic recovery from the pandemic," she said.
