Sherry FitzGerald’s Post

Planning Update: Permitted developments and favouring brownfield sites The Government have made two key announcements with a view to supporting housing development: (1) The further relaxation of permitted development for the conversion of commercial, business and service uses to dwelling houses, from 5 March 2024. (2) An instruction for councils to prioritise brownfield developments, alongside a consultation open until 26 March 2024. Read the full article by Simon Randle and Vivienne Sedgley here: https://lnkd.in/g7s7i3s7 #Planning #Brownfield #Development

As part of its ongoing review of the Island Development Plan, the States of Guernsey Development & Planning Authority has launched a further 'Call for Sites for Brownfield land', the closing date for which is 5pm on Friday 04 October 2024: "We would like to hear from you if you wish to submit a site to be considered for potential development that lies within, or adjacent to, the boundaries of a Main or Local Centre, and is available for development within the next 5 years...Only brownfield sites proposed to be developed for housing with a majority of the site for Affordable Housing will be considered. Only sites that could accommodate 5 or more housing units or are at least 0.25 acres (0.1 Hectares or 0.6 vergée) will be considered." This is effectively a 'top up' to the initial Call for Sites undertaken during 2023, and has been deemed necessary by the DPA following strong criticism of draft greenfield site allocations published earlier this year. If you put forward a site previously you do not need to resubmit, as the DPA has confirmed that those submissions still stand and will be reconsidered. If you missed or chose not to take part in the initial Call for Sites, but have a suitable site that you now wish to put forward for consideration, feel free to contact me. Collas Crill #Guernsey #IDPreview #planning #development

So here it is - the review of the London Plan. A new presumption in favour of brownfield development is recommended: "The Presumption For qualifying local planning authorities, there is a strong presumption in favour of granting planning permission for proposals which comprise or include residential development on Brownfield (Previously developed) land. Qualifying local planning authorities are those where the net housing completions since 2019/20 have fallen below the cumulative annualised total of their Table 4.1 ten-year target. The presumption does not apply to sites which are in the Green Belt or Metropolitan Open Land or a Strategic Industrial Location. In the case of proposals which would cause harm to the significance of a designated heritage asset, the presumption only applies where any such harm is clearly outweighed by the public benefits of the proposals. Where it applies, the presumption means granting planning permission as quickly as possible unless the benefits of doing so would be significantly and demonstrably outweighed by any adverse impacts which would arise from not according with policies in this plan. In applying the presumption substantial weight is to be given to the benefits of delivering homes." Lots of other new stuff at DLUHC today: https://lnkd.in/eiHS8hy2 #planning #brownfield #London #presumption #planningpermission

Market Update: Construction Sector Outlook in Australia A new home-building boom is expected, peaking at 254,000 housing starts by 2027. This marks a return to pre-pandemic activity levels, reducing risks and stabilizing supply chains. For property investors, this means increased opportunities and enhanced market confidence. 📈💼 For more insights, check out this article by Michael Bleby from the Australian Financial Review https://lnkd.in/gcr6xBRN From my perspective, this resurgence in the construction sector provides a solid foundation for long-term investment strategies. The reduced risks and stabilized supply chains offer a favorable environment for property investment, promising higher returns and diversified portfolios. #PropertyInvestment #ConstructionBoom #MarketUpdate #AustraliaRealEstate #InvestorConfidence

Larry Schlesinger writing “Housing for 100,000 people in limbo as construction projects stall” in today's The Australian Financial Review again highlights the cost of capital and access to finance as significant barriers to housing supply. This supports CrowdProperty Australia's research, reported in the AFR last year, that suggested the same issues are even more evident for small-scale shovel ready projects. Analysis of ABS data by Terry Rawnsley’s KPMG team found that as of December 31st, over 37,000 dwellings had been approved but not yet started construction - a 9% increase on the 5-year average. The article makes the point that “With the average Australian household size at 2.5 people, these stalled projects could accommodate close to 100,000 people if completed - nearly the population of regional cities like Ballarat or Toowoomba.” #TogetherWeBuild #housingcrisis  #rentalcrisis  #housinggrowth  #nswhousing #PropertyFinance #ProjectFinance #p2p #PropertyInvestment #PropertyInvesting #PropertyMarket #PropTech #fintech #fintechnews #smsf #selfmanagedsuperfund #developmentfinance #propertydeveloper #invest #investor #investing #investingstrategy #realestate

The value of construction work completed in Victoria continues to grow. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there was $16.5 billion worth of construction work done in the June 2024 quarter in Victoria. Of this, $7.04 billion was private residential housing. This was an 11.4% increase from the same quarter last year. The continued growth in construction work completed in Victoria is positive for investors, as it suggests a robust local economy and the potential for increased property values in the future. Private-sector residential housing completed in other states amounted to the following values with these year-on-year changes: * New South Wales: $5.97 billion, down 8.7% * Queensland: $4.18 billion, up 4.4% * Western Australia $1.88 billion, up 2.7% * South Australia: $1.26 billion, up 21.8% * ACT: $412 million, down 5.0% * Tasmania: $260 million, down 14.9% * Northern Territory: $36 million, down 31.9% #turnkeybuilder #melbourneproperty #melbournerealestate

Investment in residential construction for Canada decreased 2.7% compared to March 2024. Newfoundland and Labrador was down 9.1%, Prince Edward Island was down 25.5%, Nova Scotia was up 2.0%, New Brunswick was down 10.7%, Quebec was down 1.2%, Ontario was down 2.2%, Manitoba was down 5.3%, Saskatchewan was up 13.3%, Alberta was down 6.4%, **British Columbia was down 2.8%**

The City of Calgary is trying to address the “county advantage” that lures industrial businesses outside of city limits due to the cheaper land, lower taxes and other economic incentives available there, reported the Calgary Herald. "Calgary’s infrastructure and planning committee unanimously approved a series of targeted amendments to five of the city’s six industrial Area Structure Plans (ASPs) on Wednesday, in a bid to incentivize more industrial development within city limits." "A staff report states the amendments are related to transportation or land-use-related policies, aiming to remove barriers and enable development aligned with current industrial growth trends." "The amendments focus on “increased flexibility for development size (and) increased flexibility for the location of medium industrial uses,” according to the report. The revisions also aim for more consistency among industrial ASPs and better alignment with current permit requirements “for a more streamlined development process.” Amendments will be made to the Stoney, Northern, Saddle Ridge, Southeast and Southeast 68th Street industrial ASPs." https://lnkd.in/gaTx5gAK #calgary #industrial #development #incentives

Our Associate Director of Construction Economics Tiffany Emmett, spoke to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)’s ABC Radio National about the construction cost challenges and how this impacts housing supply in Australia. 🏘️ With nearly 200 insolvencies in the Australian construction sector every month, the construction sector continues to face significant challenges and rising costs, slowing progress in meeting the Federal Government’s target of building 1.2 million homes by 2029. 🏗️ Tiffany highlighted that while some material costs have decreased or stabilised, overall construction costs remain elevated and continue to impact project profitability, resulting in fewer projects going ahead. 📈 She added that, while rising building material costs and fixed price contracts were the initial cause for the high number of insolvencies, the lack of new projects in the current market means there are fewer opportunities for builders to recoup their losses, which is contributing to ongoing insolvencies. Listen to the interview: https://ab.co/3NfC7mg #EconomicOutlook #housing #Australia

RTPI supports Government’s drive to deliver more homes on brownfield land The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) has expressed its support for the government to build more homes on brownfield land. However, the Institute warns that new urban brownfield schemes must be closely monitored to ensure residents are not landed with poor quality homes or poorly planned developments that people wouldn’t want to live in. In its consultation response, the RTPI has emphasised the importance of ensuring that new market housing does not displace commercial, industrial, and logistics uses for brownfield sites that are critical for local economic growth. The Institute further stresses that brownfield and previously developed land can be more difficult to develop, and the government should take more proactive steps to help councils encourage this development. To facilitate this process, the RTPI has suggested that scaled-up Homes England funding for brownfield development, and support for local authorities to review and update their brownfield land registers could be instrumental in strengthening development pipelines quickly. The Institute also recommends that stronger mechanisms for strategic planning and public service provision could help make previously developed land better serve their communities in the long term. Victoria Hills MRTPI FICE FRSA MCMI CMgr, Chief Executive of the RTPI, said: “We welcome the government’s drive to deliver more homes on brownfield land. https://lnkd.in/enKGsp6y