Australia’s housing shortage just worsened

Thursday 16 October 2025

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released dwelling construction data for the June quarter of 2025, which suggested that Australia’s housing shortage has worsened.

The number of dwellings that commenced construction in the June quarter declined by 4.4% to 45,156, driven by a 6.6% fall in detached housing:

However, over the year to the June quarter of 2025, total dwelling commencements lifted by 9.2% to 179,038, driven by a 27.7% increase in units and apartments:

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.