Your clients are more anxious than they have been in over a decade. The data explains why, and what you can do about it.

This week on Tuesday Headlines we unpack two of the biggest stories shaping the Australian building industry right now. First, the client confidence data every builder needs to understand before their next sales conversation. Then, a clear-eyed look at why the Middle East supply shock is not COVID 2.0 — and why that distinction matters for your business.

What we cover:

The key consumer confidence index has fallen more than 36 points below its long-run average. At the same time, price expectations sit near 15-year highs. Your clients want to build. They are just frightened. We break down what is driving that fear, what two consecutive RBA rate hikes have done to borrowing capacity, and why the sales environment differs dramatically state by state right now.

We also dig into the findings from 97,000 verified consumer reviews of Australian home builders — and the single biggest driver of a five-star review that most builders are not talking about.

Then we turn to the Middle East conflict. The COVID comparison is everywhere right now. We look at where it holds, where it breaks down, and what builders should be watching as petroleum-derived material costs and diesel prices move fast.

In this episode:

• Why client hesitation is a sentiment problem, not a pricing problem
• What two RBA rate hikes have done to first home buyer borrowing power
• The state-by-state confidence split and what it means for your pipeline
• 97,000 customer reviews: the seven pain points that keep appearing
• COVID vs. the Middle East conflict: a side-by-side comparison
• What the speed of this supply shock means for contracts and pricing

Links to Articles:
https://thegoodbuilder.com.au/your-clients-are-more-anxious-than-ever-here-is-what-the-data-tells-us-about-why/
https://thegoodbuilder.com.au/covid-did-not-break-australian-construction-but-it-left-the-industry-exposed-now-the-middle-east-conflict-has-arrived/

The Australian Building Industry Health Report Q1 2026 is free to download. Grab your copy here: report.thegoodbuilder.com.au/landing-page

Pages of data covering insolvencies, construction costs, consumer sentiment, workforce shortfalls, land supply, interest rates, government policy, and the full Iran conflict supply chain analysis. The most comprehensive picture of the Australian building industry in one place.

This episode is powered by MyConstruct — construction management software built for Australian builders. Manage jobs, communicate with clients, and cut the admin. Get your 30-daty trial at myconstruct.com

Also proudly supported by Pay.com.au — use promo code GOOD20 for 20,000 bonus points at pay.com.au/tgb

The TGB Australian Building Industry Health Report is out now. Sixty-plus pages of real data — no spin, no government talking points, no marketing fluff.

But data is only useful if you know how to put it to work.

In today's Daily Dose, Az walks through five practical ways builders can use the report right now — from pricing jobs in a cost environment being shaped by the Strait of Hormuz disruption, to understanding which developers control the land in your market, to knowing exactly what homebuyers are complaining about before they complain to you.

This is not a summary of the report. It's a guide to using it.

In this episode:

— Why gut feel is not a pricing strategy when material costs are moving this fast
— The Top 30 developer rankings by state and what they mean for house and land in 2026
— What 97,000+ homebuyer reviews tell us about where trust is breaking down
— How to walk into any negotiation, client conversation, or deal assessment with something solid behind you
— The forward-looking signals in the report that builders should be watching right now

Plus — the Mitre 10 competition, a heads up on an upcoming guest who is going to challenge a lot of what you think you know about the homes we build, news on the digital marketing workshop, and something very exciting on the horizon at The Good Builder.

Grab the report at https://thegoodbuilder.com.au/australian-building-industry-health-report/

Powered by MyConstruct — construction management software built for Australian builders. Get your 30-day FREE trial - myconstruct.com

Also sponsored by Pay.com.au — use code GOOD20 for 20,000 bonus points.
Head to pay.com.au/tgb for more and terms and conditions.

Today's guest is John Davis, Director of MMC Modular and creator of ModFloor, a light gauge steel chassis system that is changing the way modular buildings are designed, manufactured, and transported across Australia and internationally.

John's story spans Darwin in 1974, residential building in Queensland, a successful expansion into New Zealand, and launching a light gauge steel framing company in the United States before anyone else had done it. When he returned to Australia in 2012, he set his sights on solving one of modular construction's most expensive and persistent problems: chassis deflection and the skilled labour required to build them.

What came out of that was ModFloor, and then ModFloor Plus. A system assembled by unskilled labour in under three hours, with no welding, no cutting, and deflection figures that have transformed the economics of transporting modules to regional and remote sites."

In this episode John and Az cover:

- The real cost of chassis deflection and why modular builders are allocating up to $25,000 for remedial work on country jobs

- How MMC Modular's in-house roll forming machinery and online design portal removes the need for builders to employ engineers or experienced detailers in-house

- The case for a separate NCC code for modular and factory-built housing, and why the current system is holding the industry back

- Why modular construction is manufacturing, not building, and what that mindset shift means for operators who want to scale

- The land lease sector, litigation risk, and how MMC's relocatable system is solving a compliance problem most developers haven't faced yet yet

- How MMC's steel and insulated floor panel is helping builders eliminate concrete entirely in regional builds

John's answer to what makes a good builder, covering costing, product knowledge, and thinking laterally about new materials

John can be reached directly on 0412 918 297 or through the Steelfast website at www.steelfast.co

Sponsored by MyConstruct — construction management software built for Australian builders. Find out more and get your 30-day trial at myconstruct.com

Also sponsored by Pay.com.au — use code GOOD20 for 20,000 bonus points. T's & C's Apply. Head to https://pay.com.au/tgb/

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