Factory-built homes could help Australia rebuild its industry

Housing

Saturday, 25 July 2026, 8:00 am

Saturday, 25 July 2026, 10:14 am

Modular homes can help Australia rebuild its industry, says a new report.

In short:

Modular homes can help solve Australia's housing crisis, says a new report.

They can also help Australia's economy and make its supply chains stronger.

What's next?

The report was released at Labor's National Conference on Saturday.

Australia can build more homes faster to solve its housing crisis, says the report.

This plan can help Australia rebuild its industry, which has been declining for decades.

The John Curtin Research Centre released a report called Manufacturing Homes: A National Strategy for Solving Australia's Housing Crisis.

The report suggests building homes in a factory and then moving them to where they are needed.

Federal Housing Minister Clare O'Neil launched the report at Labor's National Conference.

Australia is not making enough things itself and relies too much on other countries, which can cause problems.

If Australia makes more homes itself, it can help solve its housing crisis and rebuild its industry.

Australia's housing crisis is because homes are built too slowly and inefficiently.

Australia's housing crisis is not just about not having enough homes, but also about how homes are built.

The report says that immigrants are not the cause of the housing crisis.

In the past, Australia was able to build many homes quickly and affordably using prefabricated homes.

The current housing shortage is mainly a problem of productivity.

The report suggests a new industrial strategy to solve the housing crisis.

The report was written by the John Curtin Research Centre's chief economist and executive director.

The report says that building homes in a factory can make them cheaper and more efficient.

Labor's conference allows its members to have a say in the party's decisions.

Only a small percentage of homes in Australia are built using modular or manufactured methods.

The report says that the government, industry, and finance sector need to work together to help the manufactured housing sector grow.

The government should set a goal to increase the use of Australian-made housing to 35% by 2036-37.

Achieving this goal would make Australian-made housing a mainstream way of building homes.

See the graph below from the report.

The report argues that making manufactured housing a central part of Australia's housing system can help rebuild its industry.

The closure of Australia's automotive industry and the decline of complex manufacturing have hurt its industrial ecosystems.

The pandemic and supply chain disruptions have shown the risks of relying too much on other countries.

Rebuilding Australia's industry is a choice about what kind of country it wants to be.

Clare O'Neil launched the report at Labor's National Conference.

The report makes recommendations to achieve a home-building revolution.

The report makes 12 recommendations, structured around five key pillars.

The report is called A National Strategy for Solving Australia's Housing Crisis.

First, the government should help the manufactured housing sector grow by creating economies of scale.

Unlike traditional building methods, manufactured housing becomes cheaper the more it is built.

Government demand for manufactured housing can lower prices for private buyers.

The government can use policy levers like procurement and social housing policies to help the manufactured housing sector.

Second, the Australian manufactured housing industry should not rely too much on imports.

Instead, it can use Australia's timber plantations and wood processing sectors.

Prefabricated and modular housing have a long history in Australia.

The report says that reforms are needed to ensure the domestic industry can meet demand without supply-side problems.

Policy levers include local content requirements and reforms to the National Reconstruction Fund.

Third, Australia's housing system needs to change to make manufactured housing a central part.

A change of national building culture will require system-wide change using policy levers like planning, certification, and finance.

Fourth, the manufactured housing industry will need a lot of young workers to prevent skills and labor shortages.

Policy levers include expanding trade and apprentice pathways and aligning the training system with industry requirements.

Fifth, demo projects and regional manufacturing hubs are essential to prove the model and build public confidence.

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