Rural Councils Victoria represents communities across Victoria’s 34 rural local government areas and said its rural housing survey had found that three factors, in particular, had hampered efforts to address the housing crisis in regional areas.
It listed the biggest blockers as:
- Availability and preparation of land.
- Ability to find qualified people (trades and planners).
- State policy and regulation.
The RCV said a lack of land availability for homes was the main issue preventing the crisis from being addressed, with almost half (48.6 per cent) of respondents nominating it.
Making land ready for development was also a high-ranking issue, with 39.2 per cent of respondents suggesting it.
Combined, that made land-related issues major concerns for 85.8 per cent of respondents.
A lack of skilled workers, such as planning staff, builders and tradespeople, also featured as a significant block to getting more homes built, and was listed by 47.3 per cent of respondents.
Just over 43 per cent nominated state policy and regulation, while a little over 35 per cent listed planning scheme/policy issues as contributing to delays.
“The Rural Housing Survey paints a stark picture of what is happening in the rural housing crisis and points to possible solutions,” Rural Councils Victoria chair Mary-Ann Brown said.
“Several councils are already working on their own solutions, but they need help from government to deliver the homes rural communities need.”
The Rural Councils Victoria survey can be found at RCV-Rural-Housing-Survey-2023.pdf (ruralcouncilsvictoria.org.au)
