“Home renovation activity nears record high, boosted by rising home prices and low unemployment,” stated Tim Reardon, HIA Chief Economist.

Wednesday, 12th November 2025: The ABS released the Lending Indicators data for the September quarter 2025 today, which provides the latest statistics on housing finance commitments.

“Data released today shows that the value of lending for renovations is almost three times higher than it was pre-pandemic. This growth in renovations work is facilitated by the rise in home prices and low unemployment,” added Mr Reardon.

“The high price of land has seen many households choose to renovate to gain additional space to accommodate a growing family. This has seen renovations activity growing twice as fast as the rest of the economy. 

“Today's data also shows that investors were responsible for building 43 per cent of new homes in the September quarter 2025. Investors play a vital role in bringing new homes to market.

"Since the 2019 election, the ABS has been reporting on the importance of investors to increasing the supply of new homes in Australia.

“Investors typically supply around a third of all new homes built in Australia but are a larger share of the market at present due to a lower level of activity from owner occupiers. 

“The ABS also released data today for overseas arrivals and departures that shows an increase in permanent/long term arrivals to Australia, from already record high levels. This suggests that demand for homes will continue to grow at an elevated rate.

“Increasing taxes on investors, even when targeted at the established market, does not lead to an increase in home supply. 

“It will be crucial for policymakers to maintain a strong pipeline of shovel-ready land to meet this return of housing demand and prevent housing affordability from worsening.

“This includes policies that reduce the tax imposts on those that build new homes and reduce the regulatory burden on the industry,” concluded Mr Reardon.

The number of loans issued nationally in the September quarter 2025 for the purchase and construction of new homes decreased by 0.2 per cent compared to the previous quarter. Tasmania had the largest increase in loans issued (+18.2 per cent), followed by New South Wales (+12.3 per cent), the Australian Capital Territory (+8.5 per cent) and Victoria (+0.3 per cent). Queensland (-0.4 per cent), Western Australia (-3.0 per cent), South and Australia (-3.9 per cent) and the Northern Territory (-26.8 per cent) all recorded declines over the same period.