According to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Victoria’s booming building and construction industry brushed off the lingering effects of Melbourne’s sixth lockdown to powerhouse the nation in construction activity for the first time.

More than $15 billion of work was carried out in Victoria between July and September 2021, up almost 6 per cent from the previous quarter.

Australia’s leading property, construction, housing and development industry groups say the Windfall Gains Tax passed by State Parliament today is a blow to the homeownership dreams of thousands of Victorians.

The Property Council of Australia, Housing Industry Association, Urban Development Institute of Australia (Victoria) and Master Builders Victoria have been united in their opposition to the Windfall Gains Tax, the 19th new or increased property tax under the Andrews Government.

The Victorian Building Authority (VBA) and Master Builders Victoria (MBV) is funding research to better understand the risk of mould growth in new energy-efficient buildings.

The 18-month research project is led by the University of Tasmania and will look at whether energy-efficient housing has a higher risk of mould growth due to the airtight nature of modern designs.

Led by researcher Dr Mark Dewsbury, it aims to see how building materials and the arrangement of external walls can be made such that moisture does not accumulate and mould should not grow.

Master Builders Victoria (MBV) CEO Rebecca Casson says she is honoured to be inducted into the 2021 Victorian Honour Roll of Women (Honour Roll) in the category of Leading Through Disaster.

Celebrating the outstanding contributions made by women from all walks of life, the Honour Roll acknowledges the many ways women have made a lasting contribution to the State of Victoria.

This year, 23 women were inducted into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women for making outstanding contributions to the Victorian community.

Master Builders Victoria (MBV) has expressed concern that the Victorian Government is trying to push through substantial changes to the building code relating to accessible housing and energy efficiency without addressing the concerns of homebuyers and the building and construction industry. The changes also fail to address

Master Builders Victoria (MBV) analysis of Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) insolvency figures shows that 19 Victorian building and construction companies entered external administration in September 2021.

Nationally, September 2021 saw 83 building and construction companies across Australia entering external administration, up 31 per cent on the same month last year.

A total of 5,705 new homes were approved across Victoria in the three months to September 2021 – up 16 per cent at the same time last year.

However, Master Builders Victoria CEO Rebecca Casson said the monthly percentage increase of building approvals in Victoria was below the national average of 22 per cent as activity continues to retreat following the closure of the successful HomeBuilder grant initiative.

Victoria recorded a 19 per cent increase in the number of building approvals for new detached houses in the three months to September 2021.

The number of owner-occupier loans for the construction of new homes in Victoria have been falling quickly and are expected to return to where they were before the sugar hit of the HomeBuilder scheme.

The number of these loans in September 2021 decreased by a further 11.8 per cent from August 2021.

Despite peaking earlier this year, the 12 months to September 2021 saw 25,619 owner-occupier loans to construct new homes. This surpassed the 10-year average by almost 72 per cent.

Master Builders Victoria (MBV) is concerned about theft from building sites due to supply shortages which have increased dramatically in recent times – with significant reports from regional areas such as Ballarat, Bendigo, Gippsland, and Geelong.

Yesterday it was reported that thieves stole a large $14,000 fibreglass swimming pool from a construction site in Geelong, sparking a police investigation.

The thieves entered the Wandana Heights property and managed to haul away the 7m pool on the back of a white truck on 20 October 2021 between 10.30 pm and 11 pm.

Women in Victoria are leading the nation to get on the tools, with nearly 40,000 females employed in the building and construction industry.

Master Builders Victoria analysis of ABS Labour Force figures show 39,217 Victorian women were employed in building and construction in August 2021.

The next highest states were New South Wales with 38,101, followed by Queensland with 31,670.

Nearly 1800 women in Victoria joined the building and construction industry in the 12 months to August 2021.