Farmers can be part of the solution to Australia's deepening regional housing crisis by building more dwellings onfarm.
That is the advice from National Farmers' Federation (NFF) president David Jochinke, who said there needed to be more incentives for building housing onfarm.
At this month's National Regional Housing Summit, the Regional Australia Institute (RAI) released figures showing the median regional house price nationally had jumped 54.2 per cent to $605,780 and the rental vacancy rate had dropped to 1.2 per cent.
Latest data from the Real Estate Institute of WA (REIWA) shows median house prices in seven of nine regions in Western Australia had increased in the December quarter from the September quarter.
For example, Busselton had climbed 4.2pc in the December quarter to $715,000 from September's median of $686,000.
It was the top performing WA regional centre for the December quarter.
Closely following was Broome at $640,000.
Median values in WA's regions are now on a par with Perth prices, according to REIWA.
Mr Jochinke said it was no secret agriculture was struggling with workforce shortages, and one of the biggest barriers to getting employees onfarm was a lack of regional housing and its high cost.
"Housing availability in the regions is at an all time low," Mr Jochinke said.
"What adds complexity to agriculture's housing requirements is not only do farmers want to attract permanent workers, but they also rely on a seasonal workforce for planting and harvest time.
"If they built houses on-farm, these could be used for both classes of employee by renting out the houses in the off-peak seasons for agri-tourism.
"And the onfarm house becomes an asset."
Mr Jochinke said incentives were needed to boost onfarm builds.
He said the RAI's push to develop bespoke, place-based housing options for specific regions was a step in the right direction.
"Let's get all ideas on the table so we find smart solutions and get the balance right between meeting housing demand and, to quote Darryl Kerrigan, maintain regional Australia's charm," Mr Jochinke said.
The NFF wants to see a boost in the regional housing mix of onfarm accommodation and traditional housing in regional centres.
Mr Jochinke said onfarm solutions provided a double win by eliminating the need for seasonal workers to find accommodation in nearby towns and travelling long distances each day, while also freeing up housing in regional communities.
"An accelerated depreciation or instant asset write-off scheme could incentivise farmers to invest in housing and accommodation," he said.
"As it stands, the Fringe Benefits Tax discourages farmers from providing housing and accommodation for employees."
Solutions also include reducing red tape through simplifying planning rules and making sure the government's $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund focuses on the regions.
Mr Jochinke said farms usually had water and power already available, so the opportunity to build was already there.
"We just need a dedicated tax advantage for quicker write-off, similar to the instant tax write-off for machinery," he said.
"Growers already have the land, the infrastructure and they require a workforce.
"So all the factors are there already."
RAI chief executive Liz Ritchie said regional housing must be a priority, as it was putting a handbrake on the nation's growth and prosperity.
"Our regions - already with 9.6 million people - are gearing up to be the 'engine room' of the nation's transition to net zero," Ms Ritchie said.
"But housing will be the key barrier to this growth."
Ms Ritchie said while it was still more affordable to buy in some regions - for now - there was no third option if locals or metro-movers were priced out of the market, and supply failed to meet demand.
Analysis by the RAI has found flats or apartments make up just 2-3pc of the total housing stock in some regional markets, compared to more than 42pc in metropolitan Australia.
"With population movement to the regions still elevated almost 12pc on pre-COVID levels, housing supply requires laser focus, with demand high for one and two-bedroom residential accommodation to support essential workers," Ms Ritchie said.
"We need to plan for, invest in and facilitate regional growth because more people want to move to regional Australia - up to 3.5 million in fact.
"But as a nation we're not prepared for this changing shift in population.
"Thousands of jobs are on offer in our regional communities and to help fill those positions, we need more diverse housing options available.
"As regional Australia develops, so too must its housing stock."
RAI, REIA and Master Builders Australia (MBA) have released a discussion paper presenting the latest regional housing stock data and highlighting local solutions.
The paper also makes policy recommendations including: taking a targeted approach to how the Housing Australia Future Fund is invested in regional areas; a National Population Plan to ensure long-term planning for future infrastructure; and adaptable policy solutions that can be tailored to address specific issues in specific communities.
REIA chief executive Anna Neelagama said in high-growth areas, it was imperative swift action was taken to alleviate current pressures on housing.
"We know the problem is a lack of supply," Ms Neelagama said.
"It's now time to move forward to specific solutions and put delivering them in the hands of our regional communities.
"These communities need at scale injections of funds in areas of high growth to build more houses and better use any existing empty houses across our regions."
MBA Australia chief executive Denita Wawn said to achieve sustainable growth in regional communities, all levels of government needed to work closely together on removing the biggest roadblocks - zoning, planning and integrated land use.
"As regional communities grow into bigger hubs of activity, the type of housing on offer needs to satisfy the needs of everyone in that community," Ms Wawn said.
"It's not always about building out, but building up with appropriate infrastructure and services in place.
"But the industry's capacity needs to be bolstered in the regions to ensure supply can keep up with demand.
"Governments need to look at how we can ensure the regions are an attractive place for businesses to expand in to and workers to move to."
Ms Ritchie said while housing was top-of-agenda for State and Federal Governments, more detail was needed about how current and proposed policies would be implemented in a regional context, where housing markets were hugely varied.
"In some communities, finding a block of land to build on is difficult - in others, there's a surplus," she said.
"That's why we need nuanced, place-based policies and programs.
"A one-size-fits-all approach could have unintended consequences.
"A blanket policy to bring more land to market should help alleviate under-supply in fast-growing regions, but will have no impact on low-growth regions where supply is already plentiful."
The RAI's Regionalisation Ambition - a 10-year, 20-goal framework for an Australia where more people live in the regions - aims to see, by 2032, the regional rental vacancy rate increase to above 3pc and for annual building approvals to keep pace with population growth.
The regional vacancy rate decreased from 1.5pc in September 2022 to 1.2pc in September 2023 and monthly regional building approvals have been decreasing since August 2021.
The Federal Government has set a target of building 1.2 million homes in the regions over five years and MBA believes this is not an ambition but a "must do".
From needing enough tradies to build the homes, ensuring the infrastructure is there to support growing communities, to attracting more investors to the regions, all policy levers need to be pulling in the same direction, according to Ms Wawn
