The Post-War Housing Boom
The 1940’s Housing Shortage}
Sometimes described in the post WWII years as `the housing shortage’, the national effort to address a very serious issue has over the years come to be called `the housing boom’. Undoubtedly it was a boom in demand and activity. There was also a notable increase in house ownership, achieved in many cases through heroic individual effort and years of sacrifice.
Changing social attitudes offered new opportunities, but also reduced the options. Emphasis in state housing plans was at first on rental dwellings; later there was a swing toward the ownership of low-cost housing. At a time when various influencers had cut the amount of rental homes, governments, banks, finance companies, building societies and housing co-ops were offering a wider range of opportunities for home ownership. Ironically this was at a time of a rise in constuction input costs.
Top on the list of factors linked to rising construction costs were the passing of legislation for the 40-hour week, and marked increases in the cost of building materials. By 1948 an employer had to pay an unskilled building worker a higher salary than a tradie had received in early 1946.
To keep both labourer and tradesman productively employed the builder needed a continuous flow of materials which was a rare occurrence in those times. A shortage of skilled workers also meant poor quality building and further loss of time.
Contract prices were loaded with an increasing profit margin as an insurance against unseen problems. Under commonwealth price control, builders were entitled to a 10 per cent `profit’ on the contract price. Above award payments were not recognised in price control and yet builders often found a need to pay above award rates to ensure a reasonable output.
Unexpected costs could happen when, for example, timber flooring was suddenly unprocurable, and a higher price would then have to be paid for imported Baltic timber for flooring.
With locally made cement taking forever to turn up, a delivery from interstate was sometimes bought at nearly three times the price. When compared to 1939 prices hardwood flooring material had, by 1948, doubled in price. Cement had risen by almost 20 per cent and terracotta roofing tiles by more than 25 per cent. A gallon of quality paint costing around 30s ($3) in 1939 had risen at least 40 per cent by 1948.
When added to rising costs and shortages of materials the government restrictions, limiting the area of a new home to 1200 square feet (111.48 square metres) for a timber house and 1250 square feet (116.12 square metres) for a brick house, completed the recipe for an imposed austerity.
The economical plan was essential; cost-saving and limitations on area made large single-purpose rooms a luxury. Verandahs and generous porches were deleted, reducing the shade at the front of the house to the absolute minimum. Ceiling heights had been gradually reduced from the turn of the century and were now usually nine feet (2745 mm). Until the government construction restrictions were lifted in 1952 the acceptance of no-nonsense functionalism was as much an imposed state as it was a fashionable philosophy. This was the era of the great Australian Dream.
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