Forget ‘The Festival State’ – South Australia could well rebrand itself ‘The Building State’, new data shows.
Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released this week show home approvals for the 12 months to the end of April have increased 5.6 per cent on the previous year, with 14,914 builds approved for the period.
This takes the number of approvals to a record high for the state, with the government crediting the rise to its landmark housing reforms under the Premier’s Housing Roadmap.
The announcement comes amid global concerns around cost of living pressures and unstable fuel costs, with SA planning approvals for new homes processed more than seven times faster than Victoria, and more than three times faster than New South Wales.
Melbourne is the nation’s most demolished capital and the suburb of Mt Waverley the most demolished region in the country. The crew at On Spot Demolition start work to demolish a house in Mt Waverley. Picture: David Caird
Minister for housing and urban development; housing infrastructure; and planning Nick Champion said the result was solid.
“We are in a league of our own when it comes to planning approvals when compared to the large eastern states,” he said.
“While Victoria is taking on average 165 processing days to approve a new home, we are doing it in 18 business days.
“In a national housing crisis, this is not an insignificant difference.”
Housing Minister Nick Champion. Pic Roy VanDerVegt
Master Builders SA CEO Will Frogley said sustained collaboration between government and industry will be essential to ensure South Australia can build the homes, infrastructure and have the workforce needed for the decade ahead.
“To achieve our housing targets and the large infrastructure projects, thousands more skilled workers are required,” he said.
“This can only be achieved through a combination of more apprentices and skilled migrants.”
According to the state government, monthly approvals have exceeded 1200 homes for 13 of the past 16 months, suggesting a sustained uplift in activity.
Will Frogley, CEO of the Master Builders Association of South Australia. Photography by Kelly Barnes
Its figures show for the 2025-26 year-to-date, it has taken, on average, 18 days for planning authorities to green light an application after lodgement, with the median assessment time 12 days – a whopping 107 days less than in Victoria.
And this approval increase is keeping our home demolishers busy.
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Paul Tucker, owner of Adelaide and Rural Salvage, who works with demolition companies to reclaim sellable items and materials from properties prior to demolition, said demolishers were busy.
“There’s a lot of demolition, but not much salvage happening, and with us finishing up next week and the largest salvage company in South Australia, there’s going to be a lot more stuff going into landfill,” he said.
Demolitions are up across the state as building approvals soar. Picture: David Caird
“There’s a lot more demolition happening than in the past, and there are more contractors in the market.
“They’re all really busy.”
Matt Jackson, managing director of David Reid Homes, said the federal government’s proposed capital gains tax framework was driving more people toward new homes.
“New builds are becoming increasingly attractive because they are aligned with the direction of the proposed changes,” he said.
Matt Jackson of David Reid Homes. Pic: Supplied
“That is pushing more activity into the construction sector and creating fresh momentum for builders and developers.”
“People want energy efficiency, modern layouts, lower maintenance and long-term value.
“They are thinking carefully about how and where they build,” he said.
“They understand the benefits of new builds and don’t want the maintenance that comes with older houses.”
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