Shane Garrett

Shane Garrett has worked as an economist for almost 15 years.

He began his career as a teaching assistant at University College Cork in Ireland, before accepting the position of an economist at the Economic & Social Research Institute in Dublin where he prepared forecasts for Ireland’s economy and its housing market. He later worked as an economic consultant in Ireland and the UK for London Economics, where he was involved in numerous studies for the UK government and the European Commission, including in the area of housing policy.

Mr Garrett joined the Housing Industry Association’s economics team in February 2013. As senior economist, he delivered dozens of presentations annually to housing industry stakeholders’ right around Australia. He was centrally involved in the production of HIA’s large economics publication suite and the team’s forecasts, and was particularly knowledgeable regarding Australia’s $33 billion home renovations market. He contributed to the appraisal and development of HIA’s housing policies, where dwelling prices and housing affordability metrics are examples of particular expertise. He regularly assisted HIA members with their information requests and data requirements, and played a key role in the delivery of dedicated research projects for clients of Australian Construction Insights (ACI) - the economic consultancy arm of HIA Economics.

Mr Garrett regularly appears in the print and broadcast media providing commentary on economic issues and insights into the housing market.

He has been chief economist at Master Builders Australia since October 2018.

Mr Garrett holds a Bachelors in Economics and Mathematics, and a Masters in Business Economics.