Illawarra residents are being urged to support an appeal that an advocacy group says will help provide a consistent strategy to address housing affordability.
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The Real Estate Institute of NSW is calling on the community to sign a petition for the real estate profession to move out from under NSW Fair Trading, and place it under the direction of a Property Services Commissioner reporting to the Department of Premier and Cabinet.
Trever Molenaar, Real Estate Institute Illawarra chairman pledged support for the petition at a local level.
“The property industry is a significant industry both financially and physically which adds too much value to the economy to be grouped under the existing body,” he said.
“Better training and governance is needed moving forward.”
REINSW CEO Tim McKibbin said it was time for the Premier to recognise the “extraordinary value and importance that property has to the hearts and hip pockets of her constituents and the economy of the state”.
“Residential real estate contributes $107 billion to the NSW economy annually and more than $8.4 billion to the state government through stamp duty,” Mr McKibbin said.
“However, NSW ‘boasts’ the most expensive real estate in Australia with government legislation and red tape adding more than 40 per cent of the cost of a new home.
“Residential real estate is a high value, low volume, high risk investment that requires better levels of education and professionalism than Fair Trading can mandate.
“Creating a Property Services Commissioner will provide a consistent strategy to address housing affordability in NSW.
“It will provide a consistent strategy and framework to deliver better quality planning outcomes.”
The petition is currently available here.