Regional housing continues to hit crisis point

Nationals Member for Ovens Valley, Tim McCurdy, has major concerns about the housing shortage across the Ovens Valley, due, in part, to a myriad of new taxes and red tape delaying developments.
Speaking in Parliament, Mr McCurdy said, “Housing across regional Victoria and specifically in the Ovens Valley electorate is at crisis point. If the government was serious about housing reform, they would remove the obstacles that our local councils face.”
Mr McCurdy broached the extreme shortage of housing available for long-term rentals, with data suggested the rise of short-term rentals is heavily impacting the market.
“I hear from constituents nearly daily about the lack of rentals available, because sadly renters who are being forced to leave because either their property is being sold or owners want to move back in.
“I know Myrtleford and Bright are really feeling the pinch as well, and they are trying to get rental houses built.”
Mr McCurdy also mentioned the perilous state of the building industry in Victoria, describing it as being “on a knife edge.”
“I have builders who talk to me about how they cannot get to lock-up stage because they need a component they simply cannot get. There are significant payments at the lock-up stage, so obviously the client can withhold payment until they get to this critical stage. This can drag on and on and on.
“If not for the goodwill of all involved – the traders and the clients and the hardware suppliers and all those – we really could be at a standstill already.”
Mr McCurdy concluded with a scathing rebuke of the Government, stating, “We need all the help we can get.
“The Premier really just needs to get back to the basics and try to understand how regional Victoria ticks.”