“It’s vital that the funding is extended to include making existing homes and investment properties more resilient to serious economic downturns, like the one we’re experiencing right now.”

The Diddillibah man said one way of “pandemic proofing” the housing industry was for private investors to flip properties on the Coast to better suit the population’s needs.

“I don’t want to see stimulus going toward community housing providers and not-for-profits,” he said.

“They already get enough funding and they’re very inefficient with how they produce housing.

“What I see is the absolute  ability for private investors to be able to stimulate the economy by using those tradies and the stimulus to create a better micro apartment set up in housing on the Sunshine Coast, in particular.”

Mr Ugarte said of those who are looking for rentals now, 60 to 80 per cent of the market are single people or couples. “But the majority of housing available on the Sunshine Coast is three, four and five bedroom houses,” he said.

“If you have been saving toward renovating your home, or building a new home to live in, now is the time to get the project started.

DOWNLOAD the HomeBuilder Scheme Fact Sheet HERE.