Builders in the western suburbs are busier than ever, despite pandemic fears, council figures show.
The councils of Cottesloe, Claremont, Cambridge, Nedlands and Subiaco issued a combined 140 building permits in July, up from 113 in the same month last year.
But the big rise was in the value of the projects, which jumped from $23.7million last year to $68.3million this year.
The biggest increase was in Cambridge, which approved 52 permits for projects worth a combined $32.6 million this July, compared to a total of $7.4 million in July 2019.
Owner/Director of Humphrey Homes Dean Humphrey said he believed state and federal stimulus funding was having its desired effect.
“What they are doing is positively influencing consumer confidence which has taken a hit because of COVID-19, and keeping people in jobs which can only be a good thing,” he said.
“I strongly feel, however, that the time period needs to be extended to avoid what is shaping up to be a short-term bubble.
“One result of this bubble is that the cost of building, including trade rates, is already trending upwards.
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A version of this story first appeared in The Post Newspaper on 3 October 2020.