Flat pack and modular homes are alternative housing methods tipped to help ease affordability issues across the country.
Housing affordability and accessibility is going to worsen and the only way to improve it is to change the way homes are built, according to industry experts.
Rising material costs, labour shortages, supply chain disruptions and increasing demand for limited homes is pushing property prices to eye-watering levels in many areas.
Ray White Group chief economist Nerida Conisbee said affordability was going to worsen as housing became harder and more expensive to deliver, further limiting supply and putting upward pressure on prices.
“A lack of skilled tradespeople, alongside elevated material costs, drove a sharp increase in costs through 2022 and 2023,” she said.
“While this growth moderated for a period, it never returned to normal levels.
“More recent increases are again being driven primarily by labour shortages, with capacity constraints in the construction sector continuing to place upward pressure on costs.”
A Shed House built on Kangaroo Island. Picture: Supplied.
Ms Conisbee said last year’s increases were largely domestic and labour-driven, but now the Middle East conflict contributing to higher fuel costs and disruptions to shipping routes would have a bigger impact.
While several housing policies were promised to South Australians in the recent state election to get more people into homes, Shed House Australia director and co-founder Dave Penfold said they didn’t address the full scope of challenges ahead.
“A focus on how we build homes differently must be embedded in policy to address the myriad of affordability issues,” he said.
“The domestic construction industry has relied on the same methods for too long, even as costs, labour shortages and demand have fundamentally changed. “
Shed House Australia’s kits can be turned into a high-quality, sustainable and architecturally designed homes faster and more efficiently than traditional houses and can be built by an owner.
“Our homes can reach lockup in as little as four to eight weeks and cost up to 20 per cent less than conventional domestic construction methods seeking the same beautiful form,” Mr Penfold said.
The shed-frame houses come flat packed and pre-punched on a truck ready to be built, with designs ranging from $52,000 to $145,000, plus GST.
However, the cost to build varies depending on several factors, including location, site conditions, trade availability, whether owners choose to build themselves or engage a registered builder, and the interior and exterior finishes chosen.
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Modular homes are also gaining popularity in Australia as the dream of owning a house gets further out of reach for many people.
Two in Kadina were so well received last year that they were snapped up quickly.
Built by BoxMod in Chinese factories then shipped to SA for assembly, they can arrive in months, be installed within weeks and are priced under $300,000, excluding the cost of land.
A modular home at Kadina was snapped up quickly last year. Picture: Supplied.
OC executive director and co-founder Nathan Casserly said alternative forms of housing like flat pack, modular and even tiny homes would be ideal in regional areas.
As international travel gets harder and more expensive, and the cost of building in regional areas rises, Mr Casserly said non-traditional housing could be the answer.
“It might not be our generation that’s going to do the buying but the kids now, what are they interested in? They might love flat pack or modular homes,” he said.
It might be more difficult to build those in metropolitan areas, Mr Casserly said, because of land constraints but apartments would make a huge difference in cities.
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