NSW has nation's slowest development planning system
The NSW Government’s Productivity Commissioners review into the NSW Planning System in 2021, has shown that NSW is the slowest planning system in Australia, according to UDIA NSW research.
Delays in planning approvals are resulting in increased holding costs, the UDIA's Steve Mann said.
“Victoria has recognised the benefits of speeding up the planning system.
"It will create jobs and help to solve the housing supply and affordability crisis.
" NSW needs to get more ambitious if it is to tackle the housing supply and affordability crisis we face throughout the state," he said.
He said the major reforms in Victoria’s planning system aimed at speeding up building approvals and cutting red tape will see NSW falling further behind.
The delays were especially with rezoning, approval timeframes and the coordinated delivery of utilities.
"Delays at these stages will directly and correspondingly increase holding costs for any proposed development and inevitably push up total project costs and house prices.
"Our research also identified a dozen Sydney based priority precincts that have experienced a substantial delay in delivery from rezoning through development commencement of 6 years or higher.
"This is in addition to the lengthy delays to reach the rezoning stage with some taking more than 8 years."
It has have compared these timeframes to other Australian planning jurisdictions, which notably have shorter precinct release timeframes, especially during the rezoning stage.
Category Current NSW performance Other states
Medium Density 200 days 70 to 105 days
High Density 190 days 105 days
Greenfield sub-divisions 130 days 2nd slowest state – QLD (100 days)
(Table showing the figures obtained from the Productivity Commissioner’s White Paper)
