The Housing Industry Association (HIA) announces that the latest Housing 100 Report has posted a strong result in 2013/14, aligned with the healthy growth in national new home construction last year.

Ranking Australia’s largest 100 residential builders based on the number of homes commenced each year, the latest HIA-COLORBOND steel Housing 100 Report positions Meriton Apartments at the top in 2013/14. Meriton Apartments started 7,929 dwellings in 2013/14, comprising of multi-units in New South Wales and Queensland.

BGC (Australia) was ranked Australia’s second largest builder in 2013/14 with 5,004 housing starts in Western Australia. Alcock Brown-Neaves Group came in third with 4,142 housing starts, building in the markets of Western Australia and Victoria.

Seventeen builders who featured in the latest 2013/14 Housing 100 did not make the list the previous year. Four builders have moved into the top 20 from outside this ranking range in 2012/13, including Brookfield Multiplex, L.U. Simon Builders Pty Ltd, Hotondo Homes, and Masterton.

According to HIA Chief Economist Dr Harley Dale, the total number of Housing 100 starts increased by 31 per cent to 66,764 in 2013/14 including 47,797 detached houses and 18,967 multi-units.

Harley Dale adds that the key is to ensure the 180,000+ dwellings Australia started in 2013/14 become the new benchmark average level in a new home building cycle; in achieving that goal Australia will experience productivity growth and improvements in overall standard of living.

The largest 100 builders held a 37 per cent share of Australia-wide housing starts in 2013/14, up from 32 per cent in 2012/13. In 2013/14 the market share for the Housing 100 detached house builders was 46 per cent, up from 43 per cent in 2012/13. The multi-unit share for the Housing 100 increased from 16 per cent in 2012/13 to 24 per cent in 2013/14.