A draft state government position statement released for comment today to govern the delivery of micro lots in Western Australia should lead to greater affordability and more diversity of housing choices for buyers according to the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA WA).
“The development industry has been leading the way in delivering more affordable product to the market in WA to meet consumer demand,” UDIA WA President Nick Allingame said.
“Micro lots are just one option that is being pursued in order to provide quality housing at an entry level price to suit first home buyers, empty nesters, downsizers and investors,” Mr Allingame said.
“The new guidelines will hopefully facilitate a broader roll out of these lot types in more areas,” Mr Allingame said.
“UDIA is keen to ensure that the draft enables industry to deliver quality outcomes for the community and showcase how smaller, higher density living options can meet a growing need among home buyers in both established and new areas,” Mr Allingame said.
“We must produce a product that people embrace so that we can continue to innovate and deliver a diversity of housing options to the market that demonstrate the positive contribution that these types of housing can make to the overall urban fabric,” Mr Allingame said.
Micro lots are green title lots sized under 100m² but larger than 80m².
There are successful examples of these types of lots in South Australia and the eastern states and the first micro lot trial was recently released to the market in Ellenbrook in WA.
“We can see from the successful launch of micro lots in Ellenbrook that the market in WA is ready for this type of product,” Mr Allingame said.
“It is important to note that homes on micro lots are specifically designed to maximise the small land size and should be located close to public open space, public transport and other amenity and services to compensate for the smaller amount of private space,” Mr Allingame said.
“It is not just the lower cost of purchasing a smaller lot that makes this option more affordable,” Mr Allingame said. “Easy access to transport and other services means that the longer term cost of living is cheaper and therefore overall affordability is addressed.”
“In new areas, developers are able to integrate micro lots into the overall design of a project so that they are in the best location and provide a mix of housing options to buyers,” Mr Allingame said.
“The fact these lots are green titled enables consumers the option to purchase small, without entering into a strata title arrangement, as they would with a townhouse or similar,” Mr Allingame said.
“This is an exciting step forward for providing more choice to the WA market,” Mr Allingame said. “UDIA looks forward to providing comment on the draft position statement to ensure we achieve the best possible outcomes for the community.”
Ends.