Queensland's 'ambitious' plan for one million new homes leaves some feeling squeezed out

Kim Weston has moved three times within her Brisbane suburb over 10 years but is leaving for good before a 450-home development is built on her street.

The plan for the vacant land is part of the Queensland government's ambitious target to build one million homes in 20 years.

As it marks two years in office, the LNP has touted a 35 per cent rise in the rate of homes under construction in Queensland.

But the completion of 34,627 homes in the last financial year falls well short of the 50,000 needed each year until 2044 to meet its promise.

The premier has flagged Canberra's tax changes may cause "challenges" on its path, while the building industry peak body says the state needs 20,000 more tradies.

Despite this, the government's not backing down.

For Ms Weston in Banyo, the government's approach to housing has been a "failure" because it is "not listening" to community concerns.

Ms Weston said she did not oppose development but rather took issue with the suitability of the plans for the area.

"I know that people need housing, but build according to the site," she said.

The 6.4-hectare former Energex site, which has sat vacant for more than 10 years, will be home to 207 townhouses, 64 affordable housing units and an 180-bed residential aged care facility, with construction expected to start next year.

The project is part of the government's land activation program, overseen by Economic Development Queensland (EDQ), which has the power to fast-track developments.

An EDQ spokesperson said it had undertaken a "robust community engagement process" to ensure residents and the community could have their say, with information distributed via a letterbox drop, email and social media.

Housing Minister Sam O'Connor said while the government would consider such feedback, the land had been earmarked for housing for a long time.

"It is something we will not apologise for because there should be housing in locations like that," he said.

"It is very close to public transport, it's very close to services, it is very close to everything that people need for a great life."

The road to building one million

More than 52,500 homes were under construction in Queensland in the June quarter, Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows.

Premier David Crisafulli celebrated the milestone, saying four consecutive quarters showed "real momentum".

However, he warned this would be a "buttress", expecting the sector to "come off the boil" on account of the federal government's housing tax changes.

Canberra's shake-up has "shattered confidence" in the construction sector, according to Mr O'Connor, but the government would not shy away from its promise of one million new homes.

"It's an ambitious target, but we are sticking by it, and it is what Queenslanders expect," he said.

Finding the workforce to build one million new homes, including 53,500 for social housing, is the number one issue from the perspective of Master Builders.

Queensland deputy chief executive Michael Hopkins said the state is about 20,000 workers short of what is required, with "more emphasis" needed on attracting skilled tradies and training up apprentices.

"There are certainly lots of headwinds and lots of challenges facing the local industry at the moment," he said.

"Finding all the skilled tradies we need to build the 50,000 homes has got to be at the top of the list at the moment."

The minister agrees it is their biggest challenge, with a focus on getting skilled workers into the state.

Almost 60,300 homes have been finished since the December 2024 quarter, data from the ABS shows.

Mr Hopkins described building 50,000 homes a year for two decades as "bold" but said it was important to get industry and government working together towards increasing supply.

"To sustain that every year for the next 20 years is a big target," he said. "It is the only thing that is going to turn around this housing crisis by getting that supply out of the ground."

'Broader vision' needed to address housing crisis

The LNP promised voters 500 community homes would be built on church and charity-owned land. Mr O'Connor said it had tripled its goal.

This is in its efforts to build 53,500 social and community homes by 2044.

In its two years in power, 4,913 social and affordable homes have been delivered, with another 6,574 underway.

The government's ambition for social housing is "commendable", according to Queensland Council of Social Service chief executive Aimee McVeigh.

But with the number of renters rising and the government's move to ditch affordable housing mandates for priority developments, she said a "broader vision" is needed to address the housing crisis.

"Across the board, we need to make sure we have housing that meets the needs of all Queenslanders," she said.

"We would call on the government to reintroduce targets for affordable housing in priority development areas."

Mr O'Connor said the decision to scrap affordable housing mandates following feedback from the industry that caused some developments to be unviable.

"It's a choice between mandates that could kill a project or getting homes out of the ground," he said.

Ms McVeigh said a "laser focus" was needed on social housing, but it will only meet the needs of a very small part of the community given eligibility criteria has remained unchanged over two decades.

Almost 42,000 active households were on the social housing register at the end of August.

Mr O'Connor said he had been "really up-front" that changes to eligibility were not currently on the government's agenda.

"While we have so many people waiting for social housing, that's not something we can consider," he said.