Step-free access and corridors wide enough to fit wheelchairs are among the minimum mandatory standards most state and territory building ministers agreed to for new homes at a meeting on Friday in Sydney.
Hosted by the federal government, the ministers discussed the first upgrade in the minimum energy performance of new homes since 2010, with the six-star standard lifted to seven stars.
Each jurisdiction agreed to a 12-month transition to October 2023 for both the energy efficiency upgrades while most also backed the increased accessibility standards to the national construction code. NSW, though, said it would hold off implementation “at this time”.
“The key changes are adopting a minimum standard of 7 stars and the introduction of an annual energy use budget,” the ministers’ communique said. “For the average new home, achieving a 7 star rating may require elements like better insulation, higher quality glazing and smarter floor plans.”
“National Construction Code 2022 will also deliver a new livability standard to increase the stock of homes with accessibility features and support Australians with mobility limitations to transition through life stages in their own homes,” it said.
Rebecca Vassarotti, ACT’s minister for sustainable building and construction, said: “With a climate emergency upon us, changes to our minimum energy efficiency standards must be made fast, but fairly.”
“The homes we build today will stand for many decades, so it is vital that we build homes that are climate-resilient, comfortable and accessible.”
According to Victoria’s planning minister Lizzie Blandthorn, the new code will require the inclusion of fixed appliances like heating, cooling, hot water and lighting, and offset energy use through solar PV when assessing energy efficiency.
Australia’s homes contribute about 12% of the national carbon emissions and use 24% of electricity. About half of the homes that will be around by 2050 will have been built from 2019 onwards, adding to the importance of getting design right, the Climateworks Centre had said.
Ahead of the meeting, Queensland’s energy and public works minister, Mick de Brenni, said he was “very confident ministers would recognise that livable homes are a human right” for the 4.5 million Australians living with a disability. Voluntary standards set a decade ago by the building industry had not worked.
The proposed requirements include step-free access, internal walkways that facilitate a wheelchair or walking frame, and a toilet on the entry level.
“These are simple design features that you see in public buildings all the time, that you see in our hotels and motels across the nation,” De Brenni said. “They have been striving to accommodate all Australians equally.
“It makes sense … that those design features that deliver quality, deliver dignity, are now in everybody’s homes too.” Young families with prams would also benefit.
De Brenni anticipated builder pushback but said costs would amount to $2,900 to $4,300 to meet a “silver-level” standard for accessibility, or about 1% of the total build cost. Retrofitting would cost 15 to 20 times more.
“When [builders] said it can’t be done, what they’re really saying is they don’t want to do it,” De Brenni said. “I’m sure there were complaints when people called for seatbelts to be mandatory in cars.”
However, a spokesperson for Victor Dominello, NSW’s service minister, said his state “acknowledged” the benefits of accessible housing to people with a disability and the aged.
“While the NSW government supports improved accessibility design in new housing stock, it will not be adopting the minimum accessibility provisions contained in the updated National Construction Code at this time,” the spokesperson said.
Victoria’s Blandthorn, said her state had “led the way towards a 7-star building standard and we will strongly advocate this be adopted nationally through updates to the national construction code”.
“These minimum requirements for energy efficiency and ensuring homes are ready for solar and electric vehicles will ensure new homes meet the needs of the Australian community into the future, make homes more comfortable, contribute to emissions reductions and cut energy bills,” she said.
Australia’s homes contribute about 12% of the national carbon emissions and use 24% of electricity. About half of the homes that will be around by 2050 will have been built from 2019 onwards, adding to the importance of getting design right, the Climateworks Centre had said.
Ken Morrison, CEO of the Property Council, said “housing accessibility is vitally important, especially for the significant minority of the population who require additional design features to support how they live”.
“However, at a time when the building industry is under pressure, our governments need to investigate more-targeted provisions that will provide accessible housing to those who require it without increasing costs for those who do not,” Morrison said.
“The government’s own Regulatory Impact Statement is clear that, as originally proposed, the costs outweigh the benefits by an estimated $4bn over ten years,” he said, adding that the council wanted a “three-year transition period” to implement the proposed changes.
