UDIA welcomes finalisation of BTR regulations
UDIA welcomes the finalisation of the Build to Rent (BTR) regulations which outline the requirements for a BTR development to be eligible for tax concessions. Released 1 April the amendments to the legislation provide the information required to implement key elements of the legislation and specify the requirements that a BTR dwelling must satisfy to be considered affordable.
“This initiative will be important to unlocking the at-scale housing supply Australia needs to combat our affordability crisis and gives Build to Rent a chance to be a viable solution for our housing supply crisis,” said Col Dutton, UDIA National President.
The following changes have been approved in a direct response to advocacy by UDIA designed to make it easier to invest in and build more BTR product around the nation:
- the dwelling must be either a moderate-income dwelling or a lower-income dwelling;
- the number of lower-income dwellings in a BTR development must be equal to or greater than two percent of the number of dwellings in the BTR development (rounded down to the nearest whole number);
- the owner of the BTR development (BTR owner) must have engaged an eligible community housing provider (CHP).
State government announces targeted public sector reforms
The State government has announced public sector reforms that Premier Roger Cooks says, focus on jobs, hospitals, and homes.
Taking effect from 1 July 2025, the state government is aiming to fully implement the reforms by year’s end.
Premier Roger Cook said, “[the] reforms are about creating a Team WA approach at all levels of government, so that we can relentlessly pursue the priorities of the WA community – creating jobs, building capacity in our hospitals and building more houses.”
Under the reforms the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation will become the Department of Energy and Economic Diversification (DEED). Tourism will become part of the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport, the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety will split into two agencies – Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration & Department of Local Government, Commerce, Industry Regulation and Safety.
Under the reforms that will focus on improving building infrastructure, the Department of Transport will become the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure. Within the department, the new Office of Major Infrastructure Delivery (OMID) has been created which will build Westport and the major transport infrastructure projects.
The Department of Housing and Works will take responsibility for the building, maintenance and management of social housing stock from the Department of Communities.
UDIA WA will engage directly with the new and newly aligned departments in due course.
Inaugural Emerging Leaders graduation!
Inaugural participants in the UDIA WA Emerging Leaders program completed the mentoring aspect of the program last Thursday. The wrap up event was a great way to book end what has been a fantastic learning and professional development experience for mentees and mentors alike.
Following a one day, bespoke Emerging Leaders Course held at AIM, the mentoring program was undertaken over six months. Individuals were expertly matched with an established industry leader and met up one-on-one with them for professional and industry development that is aimed at assisting participants to identify career development goals and hone their leadership style and skills.
Closing out their time together, mentors and mentees came together at the UDIA WA office to reflect on the impact the program had on themselves in their workplaces, but also on how they fit into the broader industry – excited for further opportunities to give back to the industry.
View photos from the event here.
Best wishes to our next cohort of emerging leaders, who set off on their journey on Monday at AIM. We look forward to seeing you all progress over the coming months.
To find out more about UDIA WA’s Professional Development program and the range of courses on offer, visit here.
Committees in action
This week UDIA WA’s committee meeting round continued with the Education, Connection & Excellence Strategic Committee meeting on Monday, the Environment & Climate Action Operational Committee on Tuesday, the Professional Development Operational Committee on Wednesday and the Infrastructure Operational Committee on Thursday.
At the Strategic Committee, discussions focused on ongoing work around enhancing member value through our membership strategy, professional development program, events, and research. The Professional Development Committee continued discussing speakers, content and promotions for upcoming courses, and lessons learnt from the delivery of recent courses and the inaugural UDIA WA Emerging Leaders Program.
The Environment & Climate Action Committee focused on discussing UDIA WA’s collaboration project around lifecycle assessment for land development, and our ongoing policy development and advocacy around a strategic approach to offsets and planning-led environmental decision-making.
Key topics of discussion at our Infrastructure Committee meeting included strategic infrastructure requirements, local government infrastructure matters, basic raw materials and discussions stemming from updates provided by working groups and infrastructure agencies.
Reforms to the Metropolitan Region Scheme now in effect
Changes to the Metropolitan Region Scheme (MRS) came into effect on Tuesday following a transition period that commenced when the new Planning and Development Amendment (MRS) Bill passed through Parliament in October 2024.
The changes are designed to modernise the MRS and aim to simplify processes by removing some duplicative processes from the planning system.
Planning and Lands Minister John Carey said, “the changes significantly reduce the paperwork and approvals required for more than 80 per cent of development applications, reducing the burden on homeowners, businesses and local governments.”
Changes under the updated MRS:
- introduce modern terminology and information on the purpose of the MRS, and zones and reserves to plan for future strategic land use;
- include provisions for the Western Australian Planning Commission to prepare and approve district structure plans and region planning scheme policies and special control areas;
- in most cases, remove the requirement for development approvals on zoned land; and
- simplify development approvals by removing unnecessary red tape and double handling of applications.
Member briefing with Dan Morris Legal
On Tuesday UDIA WA were pleased to host a Member Briefing delivered by Dan Morris, Lawyer and Director at Dan Morris Legal who looked at defect liability, including the different kinds of construction defect liability, how and when they can arise, and how to avoid, mitigate and manage liability for defective construction work.
The session proved to be a valuable learning opportunity with a roundtable discussion allowing attendees to discuss their own experiences and learn more about defect liability and ways to mitigate issues if, as and when they might arise.
One of the key takeaways from the session is to get good professionals, including lawyers, to review, advise and negotiate your contracts, wherever you may fit in the contracting chain as this will potentially save you from further headaches in the long run.
We pass our thanks onto Dan and all of the attendees for a productive and educational discussion.
Expressions of Interest for the Property Education Foundation Internship Program
The Property Education Foundation (PEF) are looking for expressions of interest from companies wanting to take on student interns through the university semester break over June and July.
The aims of the PEF Internship Program are to provide support and encouragement to undergraduates pursuing careers in the property industry, develop a functional program in collaboration with industry organizations, and provide valuable networking opportunities for students.
Over the course of 50 hours, interns are to shadow the workings of an individual and should spend their time working on relevant projects, learning about the field, making industry connections, and developing both hard and soft skills.
If interested, please contact secretariat@pef.org.au by COB Wednesday 30 April 2025 with the following details:
- Organisation name
- Point of contact
- Telephone/mobile