State of the State – 3rd Quarter 2016 – September

Melbourne’s Greenfields have record uptake

The Victorian Planning Authority’s State of the State report reveals residential land in Melbourne’s Greenfields is selling at a record pace.

The VPA today released its quarterly report, which provides a snapshot of key demographics and economics metrics across Victoria, including population growth, house prices and building approvals.

The report reveals Melbourne’s Greenfield areas are immensely popular for homebuyers, with 22,000 residential lots selling in the past four quarters – a record – and the strongest market in Australia.

In the year to June 2016, the median price for a Melbourne Greenfield lot was $221,730, which is cheaper than all Australian capitals except for Adelaide. Comparative prices in Sydney are more than double the Melbourne median, at $460,375.

However, land in Melbourne’s Greenfields has increased since last year, driven by a slight decrease in approved lots coming to market.

To counter this, the VPA has established a new program that will support councils to speed up approvals in the post-PSP process. This will ensure we have a strong pipeline of new houses going to the market, to maintain Victoria’s strong advantage in supply and affordability.

Lots in the Wyndham municipality in Melbourne’s south-west have had the highest take up, and sales in Melton, in the north-west, have been rapidly increasing.

Indeed, Wyndham was the fastest growing municipality in Melbourne, followed by Casey and Whittlesea, with Greater Geelong being the fastest growing regional area.

Victoria’s population is now 6 million, and is growing at a rate of over 100,000 people per year – the highest increase in Australia.

The report also revealed that Victoria’s construction industry remained strong, with $31 billion worth of approvals in 2015/2016.

The number of new residential dwellings approved in 2015/16 was 67,003 across Victoria, with 53% for detached houses, 16% for semi-detached dwellings and 31% for apartments.

Quotes attributable to VPA chief executive, Peter Seamer:

“We think it is important people understand what is happening in their city.”

“For the past 10 years, the VPA has been designing terrific new suburbs that have plentiful open space, well-connected streets and lively amenity.”

“We  have also been focusing on key urban renewal precincts in the inner city and middle ring suburbs, including the Monash area, to ensure all areas of our city remain a terrific places to live and work.”

To view the full report, click on either of the two links below.

State of the State Report – 3rd Quarter 2016 – September 2016 (PDF)

State of the State Report – 3rd Quarter 2016 – September 2016 (Word)