What happened in Residential Construction this week?

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In this newsletter, you'll find:

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The C14 Ceramic Tile Design & Installation Checklist: Still not done. Busy week—sorry! It’s in progress, just not finished yet. On the upside, if you want to chat about Quality Management Software for commercial buildings, I can fill you in on all the options, features, and benefits of the companies if had demo calls with and trial software. Not super handy unless you're actually looking for it—but if you are, I’ve got you covered.

📬️ Post 1 - 💸 Taming the Housing Boom: Can APRA Help Cool Prices?

Think interest rates falling means relief?

Not always. In this post we explore how the Reserve Bank's rate cuts in early 2025 make borrowing cheaper, but also invite a wave of investor activity that threatens affordability for everyday Australians.

Why it matters to you:

When the RBA lowers interest rates, investors rush back in, bidding up prices and edging out first-home buyers.
APRA (the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, which regulates the banks) could help rebalance that demand in favour of owner-occupiers.

Why give it a read:

You'll come away understanding how tools like mortgage serviceability buffers or caps on investor lending could make housing more accessible for first-home buyers.

👉 Want to dive deeper? Read the full article for a thoughtful take on housing reform—and why it might just hinge on APRA stepping up.

📬️ Post 2 - 🚧 Can You Lay Dirty Bricks? What the Standards Say—And What You Can Do If They Have Been

Here’s what you’ll learn in the article:

Leaching and staining: If bricks were muddy before laying, there’s little risk of ongoing mud leaching through the wall—unless the wall remains damp continuously. But mud with high oxide content could subtly discolour mortar over time. Essentially, clean bricks dry and breathe properly under normal conditions.
Compromised mortar bond: Mud-covered bricks may contaminate the mortar mix—introducing fine silts or pigments that weaken the mortar or affect colour and adherence. Meets the standard? Maybe not.
Flood-exposed bricks: Saturated bricks might reduce Initial Rate of Absorption (IRA), undermining mortar bond strength—unless a skilled bricklayer adjusted the mortar accordingly.
Standards don't mention 'dirty bricks' explicitly, but AS 3700 and AS 4773.2, along with guides like the QBCC Standards and Tolerances Guide in Queensland and the NSW equivalent, expect clean, well-finished façades. The NCC refers to these standards for structural compliance and durability, but aesthetic cleanliness is enforced more by best practice than by regulation.

👉 Curious about muddy bricks and masonry standards? Click the banner below for the full post:

💾 Software of the Week: OnlineGantt

(this is not a sponsored post, we are just trialling & testing a boatload of software currently, prior to starting two new projects soon).

🖥️ OnlineGantt: Your Quick & Simple Gantt Chart Maker

What is OnlineGantt?

OnlineGantt is a web-based tool that lets you build visual project timelines—called Gantt charts—to plan and track tasks. You don’t need to install anything or sign up; it works right in your browser (any browser).

Why use it?

If you’ve ever struggled to explain who’s doing what and when in a project—whether a home renovation, event planning, or small work project—OnlineGantt fixes that. It turns tasks into a clear visual layout, so everyone just gets it.

What we like about it:

Super affordable: You can get started with the free version—no cost, forever. For cloud saving and easy sharing, it’s just around USD $4/user/month.
Revision saving: Keeps multiple drafts so you can revisit past plans.
Easy to use: Drag a task and drop it on the timeline—no training or tech knowledge needed.
Public share links: Quickly share your chart with teammates or clients via a link—no accounts required.

Who is it for?

Freelancers, small business owners, teachers, students or anyone who wants to keep project plans organised and visual. Perfect for users who don’t need complex dashboards, just clarity without paying an arm and a leg!

What about tech requirements?

It’s browser-based and works on any device with an internet connection. There’s no app to download—and it handles most screen sizes well. (Note: interface is very simple and mobile layout may feel basic.)

👉 Learn more about OnlineGantt by clicking the link below:

ICYMI - the most important construction news from this week

🚀 The latest residential construction news from new sources around Australia for the news week ending 26-07-2025 🔥

News Theme of the Week

"Perception Over Reality – Keeping the Housing Mirage Alive"

This week’s news cycle was heavy with government gestures, developer-friendly finance schemes, and public discontent—wrapped in a layer of upbeat market spin. From “build now, pay later” housing offers and AI solutions to planning backlogs, to warnings of bubble risks and interstate investors pricing locals out, one message comes through: it’s all about maintaining confidence, even if it’s built on shifting ground.

Governments and industry players seem more focused on preserving the illusion of progress than addressing the root causes—like speculation-driven demand, supply misalignment, and un-affordable entry points. It’s all smoke, mirrors, and maintaining momentum—even if people can’t afford the ride.

Music of the week

“Everybody Wants to Rule the World” – Tears for Fears (1985)

we’re dancing to a hopeful tune, but the foundations feel less stable by the day.

Why this song? It's smooth and upbeat on the surface, much like the headlines trying to paint a healthy market, but the lyrics are loaded with manipulation, illusion and power imbalance.

It’s about control and consequence. Just like the current housing market: keep the good times rolling, no matter who gets left behind.

Can't see the video embed below? Click here to watch on Youtube.

We've highlighted our favourite news articles for the week by marking with a 🧙‍♂️ or five (yes, we've now changed to Wizards instead of Tacos - because we all need a little magic to make affordable housing appear!).

20-07-2025

East Perth residents rally against planned conversion of Fraser Suites building into public housing – [LINK]

Units to outpace houses for price growth in 2025: REIWA – [LINK]

🧙🧙 Aussies are expecting big house price gains – [LINK]

Our comment: Gotta keep the Kool-Aid and the rhetoric flowing—house prices don’t hit new records on facts alone. After all, perception is reality.

Article excerpt: "Australia is beginning to resemble a housing bubble with an economy attached."

Melbourne suburbs face 'bubble' risk amid interstate investor frenzy – [LINK]

🧙🧙🧙 Knauf launches Permarock cladding for the Australian market – [LINK]

*Our comment:* This looks like a sweet product. Can’t wait to get my hands on it and play with it (drill it, cut it, fix it: my kind of fun). Also, check out CSR Glasroc X (and F) here. Since CSR Plasterboard was acquired by Saint-Gobain in 2024, we’re now seeing products hit the Australian market that were previously only available internationally. This means builders can now construct better building envelopes using these two systems.

No developer requirements mean limited affordable homes for SRL East, CHIA Vic warns – [LINK]

21-07-2025

Building approvals rise, but more needed to hit housing targets – [LINK]

The tax change that could allow thousands of new homes, ease rental pressure – [LINK]

Record investment in social and supported homes – [LINK]

Interstate investors swarm NT homes, shutting out local buyers and raising rent prices – [LINK]

22-07-2025

🧙🧙 Overhauling contentious tax break would help hit housing target, new report says – [LINK]

Demographic change drives Aussie housing shortage – [LINK]

🧙 Finally, a sensible housing policy solution – [LINK]

Home ownership boost through Help to Buy program – [LINK]

23-07-2025

Housing crisis: Baby Boomer tax cut could help first home buyers – [LINK]

Reward investors who build: The smart plan to ease the housing squeeze – [LINK]

Australian housing values chalk up fifth straight monthly gain – [LINK]

🧙🧙🧙 Efficiency vs supply – [LINK]

24-07-2025

The double-edged impact of rate cuts on housing – [LINK]

25-07-2025

🧙🧙 Queensland family faces loss of $45,000 home deposit in Rochedale development dispute with Kinslake – [LINK]

Our comment: Engaging a lawyer to review your contract before signing probably feels like paying for insurance—you don’t like doing it, but if something goes wrong, you’ll be glad you did. This isn’t a great situation for anyone involved.

🧙🧙 Build now, pay later: new finance deals rolled out across NSW home projects – [LINK]

*Our comment:* Our take on this “buy now, pay later” scheme for housing? You’re just deferring payments you’d be making anyway—and paying a premium to the provider for the privilege. If the offer is only available on “selected” lots, the extra cost is likely built into the land value. Essentially, you’re funding your own rent while also paying a fee for the service. There is no free lunch. It’s a smile-and-nod deal: everyone’s friendly while you’re being taken for a ride.

How AI could cut the red tape so we can build 1.2 million homes – [LINK]

Our comment: Yes, AI can carry out repetitive tasks quickly, but it still needs proper oversight. It’s not that the tech is bad—it's how it's implemented. Any rollout needs to be thoughtfully managed or it could create more problems than it solves.

Labor urged to ‘scrap’ CGT discount on housing – [LINK]

🧙🧙 This $2.5b shopping mall deal could help solve the housing crisis – [LINK]

🧙 The Private Credit Generation: How Baby Boomers Have Skewed Development Feasibilities – [LINK]

26-07-2025

🧙 Aussie Developer’s Timber Model Wins Support from Heavyweights – [LINK]

🧙🧙 Brokers expect business boost from federal housing policies – [LINK]

🧙🧙🧙 Retirement living exit fees slammed – [LINK]

Our comment/opinion: Deferred Management Fees (DMFs) are predatory. Most buyers don’t fully grasp the long-term impact of signing these contracts. The provider benefits enormously from capital growth while the buyer’s estate gets nothing. All future value is consumed in this model—the buyer becomes a financial asset used to grow someone else’s investment portfolio. It wouldn’t surprise me if these companies are predicting lifespans and using that data to leverage debt. In my view, this is the lowest of the low—treating elderly Australians as little more than equity units in a financial model. Disgraceful.

On why the housing crisis will make for a heated meeting this Sunday at Marrickville in Labor heartland – [LINK]

*Our comment:* Divide and conquer, baby. While people argue over the small stuff, government keeps piling on debt, pushing house prices up, and collecting more tax to fuel spending. Meanwhile, resource royalties are wasted, and the housing market ends up subsidising industries that don’t pay their fair share. How much debt can Australians shoulder before it all comes crashing down? Is the tipping point a $2m price tag for a 4‑bedroom, 2‑bath, single-storey brick veneer? $2.5m? $3m? Eventually, the music stops, the lights come on, and everyone scrambles for the exit (robodebt, anyone?).

NSW Delivers First Modular Homes Under Offsite Housing Plan – [LINK]

*Our comment:* I’m confused. Maybe it’s my limited understanding of how things really work, but I don’t get why, in a country as vast as Australia, the only solution to housing affordability is to build smaller and smaller. Is 110m² going to be the new normal for house-and-land packages? Something here feels deeply broken—either I’ve got the whole thing wrong, or we’re all being short-changed.

The Last Word

This week’s headlines danced between hopeful announcements and hard realities—modular homes delivered, AI to cut red tape, and families losing deposits in developer disputes. Somewhere between the promise of 1.2 million homes and the fine print of “build now, pay later,” it became clear: we’re still mistaking movement for progress.

What’s missing isn’t just policy—it’s perspective. A home is more than a product. Yet the language of housing has been reduced to numbers, incentives, and schemes. Like we can spreadsheet our way out of a crisis that’s as emotional as it is economic.

And maybe that’s why so many of us feel like we’re treading water—doing all the right things, yet watching the life buoy drift further away. We’re told the system is working, even as it slips further from the everyday person. “Perception is reality,” they say. But reality doesn’t care what you believe—it just keeps knocking.

So here’s to those still asking the hard questions, still showing up, still not buying the gloss. Maybe what we need isn’t another taskforce or tax tweak, but a quiet moment to ask: what kind of future are we actually building?

🥁 As Fleetwood Mac once said, “You can go your own way.” And maybe we should—because the current path seems more about preserving illusions than delivering homes.

Until next week, build thoughtfully.

Can't see the video embed below? Click here to watch on YouTube.

😶‍🌫️ That's all of today

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What happened in Residential Construction this week? 25-07-2025

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