An increasing number of people who own property in Australia are choosing to renovate their houses or apartments, the Housing Industry Association (HIA) has claimed.
Dr Harley Dale, chief economist at the HIA, was commenting after the publication of figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on construction levels in Australia in the first quarter of the year.
These revealed that a 1.8 per cent rise in major renovation activity took place in the March 2011 quarter.
This brought the total amount spent on renovations to around $6.91 billion (£4.47 billion), which is the highest it has been for two years.
"Australians are increasingly looking to improve their existing homes rather than face the mounting transaction costs and new housing taxes and charges they will incur if they trade-up to another property or build a new home," said Dr Dale.
Earlier this month, Paul Bidwell, director of housing at Master Builders Queensland, told API Magazine that the number of Australian property owners carrying out repairs on their homes has increased of late.
Posted by Craig Francis
