At a briefing for members of the NSW Parliament on Thursday, advocacy group the Property Council released a five-point plan to assist the state government in solving the state’s housing affordability crisis.

The plan seeks to explain why it is so difficult to bring new stock to market at $500,000 and under, as well as set out a list of recommendations that will make this aspiration much more likely.

“This is not just a Sydney problem, we have rising prices here in the Illawarra and this is an important plan to head off price growth,” Kim Rawson, regional director Illawarra, Property Council of Australia said. 

“The five-point plan is a blueprint for action. Property Council members stand ready to build the houses NSW needs, we just need the government to take the policy and budget decisions to meet us halfway.”

The five points are: turbocharging housing supply through increased land supply and planning reform; reforming state property taxes and reducing fees, charges, and red tape; better co-operation between all levels of government; bridging the deposit gap and supporting first home buyers better; and supporting the rental market and fostering innovative, affordable rental product.

“These five points address demand and supply pressures on the housing market to provide a well-rounded, achievable model,” Ms Rawson said.

“Real solutions will require the Premier to be brave and bold and this is particularly true in the regions.

“The Illawarra needs infrastructure to unlock land for housing supply and connect our growing region with Sydney – we need to be ahead of the curb on local housing measures and this plan outlines how we do it. This plan is just that and will make significant inroads in addressing the housing affordability challenge immediately and for the longer term. Future generations of the Illawarra must not be burdened by the housing affordability crisis.”

CoreLogic’s Hedonic Home Value Index April 2017 results revealed that the median house price for the Illawarra grew 3.4 per cent to $632,500. This is the strongest March quarter house price growth since the Global Financial Crisis hit markets.