Australia’s residential building market is getting a massive economic boost thanks to a brand new Government scheme, HomeBuilder.

Denita Wawn, CEO of Master Builders Australia, described the scheme as a lifeline for the industry. “It will mean more new homes, more small businesses and jobs are protected.

“Based on the Government’s estimated 27,000 grants, we think the scheme will be used for $10 billion in building activity, supporting the viability of 368,000 small builders and tradies – the businesses which employ 800,000 people in communities around Australia,” she said.

“The scheme is well targeted and should maximise the number of builders, tradies, workers, apprentices and households that will benefit.”

Hotondo Homes welcomes HomeBuilder scheme

At Hotondo Homes national sales manager Richard Linton told Inside Franchise Business this initiative will have a positive impact on the network’s franchisees.

“Hotondo Homes builders welcome these grants, our builders are highly optimistic and are excited by
this announcement. This scheme won’t just benefit the business, it will also have a huge impact on
the broader community,” he said.

“It will make a huge difference, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I believe families will be
rallying around their children to ensure they can enter the property market.

“It’s an incentive to get people that may have been thinking about taking that first step finally get
onto the property ladder. It’s a great opportunity to move forward, because buying a home is the
great Australian dream that we all aspire to.”

Linton said the scheme is not limited by location so it will suit Hotondo Homes’ target market.

“The savings are huge when paired with some of the other First Home Owner Grants that are offered by the individual states,” he said.

The coronavirus crisis has resulted in fewer clients starting out new projects and committing to fees and deposits.

However the business utilised its online platforms to ensure other customers could continue to progress their projects, and with social distancing observed on sites, building workflow was only slightly impacted, he said. 

Opportunities in regional areas

Chris O’Dwyer, Hotondo Homes network performance manager, believes this scheme is an important milestone.

“We’re anticipating to see an influx of people entering the property market, and we are going to need
experienced builders to help service them, so this is a great opportunity to expand our network.

“The eligibility criteria has certainly opened up the market and means more people will be able to get
their foot in the door,” he said.

“It’s a massive boost for builders, particularly in those regional areas that will benefit from both the
HomeBuilder scheme and the state specific First Home Owner grants, and our recruitment team has
already been inundated with questions from builders in regional areas in terms of how this
announcement could assist them in growing their business.

“The benefit of joining the Hotondo Homes network is that we have a number of assets and systems
available which can help smaller builders transform into medium sized businesses. We have a team
of more than 30 support office staff who are always on hand and happy to help.”