Found the following article on Brokernews that has some information on the topic of population growth and the impact on housing that was was sharing:

A new focus on slowing Australia’s population growth rate by Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s Government is set to become a “double edged sword” for homeowners.

BIS Shrapnel senior economist John Alexander told Broker News a slowdown in population growth will cause weaker underlying demand for housing, though this is unlikely to change the degree of pressure currently caused by housing shortages, as Australia is “well short” of what it needs.

Alexander said slower population growth would also feed through into slower retail sales growth, which would benefit existing homeowners through less upward pressure on interest rates, but result in a weaker economy overall, countering the positive effects.

“I suspect for the overall community it may not be the kind of positive thing that some people might perceive it to be,” he said.

Anderson said slower population growth is already happening, and that new Government policy will be focused on ensuring the mix of skilled migrants coming to Australia is the right one.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ preliminary estimates of Australia’s annual population growth rate slowed to 2% during 2009, down from a peak of 2.2% in the year ended 31 December 2008.

A May report from BIS Shrapnel predicted growth would slow considerably in 2010/11 and 2011/12, as net overseas migration declined from record highs experienced in 2007/08 and 2008/09.

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