It’s becoming a common theme. Developers across Victoria hold planning permits for projects worth hundreds of millions of dollars but are choosing to delay construction indefinitely as economic conditions render previously viable developments unworkable.

Construction costs have risen 30 to 40 per cent since the pandemic. Government levies compound financial pressure, creating a gap between what projects cost to build and what they can generate in returns.

Where permits once signalled immediate construction activity, they now function more like options, held until the market realigns with project economics.