The ACT should consider more lease variation charge discounts as part of its efforts to allow more missing middle-style housing in Canberra, the Planning Institute of Australia says.
Natalia Anderson, the institute's ACT president, welcomed the territory government's announcement it would commission a new design guide to cover housing such as terraces, duplexes, townhouses and manor houses.
"At the moment, you pretty much have an apartment or a house, and there is no in between. So we are very happy to look into this," Ms Anderson said.
"We've been saying the same thing for years, so we're really happy that it's getting into policy so that we can at least start having these conversations."
Planning Minister Chris Steel on Friday released a statement of planning priorities, which included the development of a design guide for missing middle housing that would inform potential future density uplift in Canberra's suburbs.
"Further planning work will support potential legislative changes to enable well-designed, sustainable, and affordable missing middle options in existing residential zones including RZ1 blocks," the statement said.
Ms Anderson warned the policies wore a tiny piece of the puzzle, and the government needed to resolve lease variation charge issues.
A design guide for missing middle housing would also need to permit flexibility to allow innovation, she said.
Lease variation charges were also needed, she said, but remissions of 25 per cent if certain criteria were met would encourage more housing to be built.
"If you were to maybe choose one of the options in the design guide, or use some of the elements, you may get a remission in your lease variation charge, which means that a block that normally could only do one or two dwellings, could potentially do three dwellings," Dr Anderson said, describing a potential scheme.
Lease variation charges apply in the ACT when a block's crown lease is varied to allow other uses; the owner is taxed on the increase in value.
Ms Anderson said the ACT's planning changes had moved in the right direction, but it would become clearer once new housing is built.
Master Builders ACT chief executive Michael Hopkins welcomed the statement but said more action was needed urgently to deliver missing middle housing.
"The time for action to boost housing supply is now. While we welcome the minister's commitment to drafting a missing middle design guide, much more action is needed to urgently address Canberra's housing needs and remove current roadblocks," Mr Hopkins said.
Mr Hopkins said Canberrans would be forced into inappropriate housing choices.
"Having to wait 18 months to two years for a new design guideline, and then longer again for zoning changes, means Canberrans will have to wait too long for appropriately designed middle housing," he said.
The Property Council ACT said it "cautiously welcomed" the planning statement.
"It is clear that we need more housing supply to support our growing city, and a focus on bolstering the density in the missing middle and more housing diversity is welcome. However, it is crucial that the ACT government backs these initiatives with robust policies and adequate funding," the council's interim ACT executive director Gino Luglietti said.
