Hickinbotham builds three Playford Alive homes in four months

For builders, the signal is that the state land agency is willing to change how it sequences works and works with builders, not only what it sells. Mr Gatsios put it this way: “We need to pull every lever available, from how we sequence works and work with builders to new construction methods and technologies.”

The numbers

Mr Gatsios said the foundations were poured just over three months before the release, and the homes are now ready for people to move into. Playford Alive land also featured in our earlier story, Playford first-home plots capped at $259,000 as packages near $800k.

The three single-storey dwellings are part of Hickinbotham’s range of predesigned homes. Each has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, plus an open-plan kitchen, living and dining zone, across about 180 square metres.

The homes used a mix of prefabricated modules, so the frames, external walls and roofs were finished in a single month. Traditional building methods and materials were then used to finish them on a tightly managed construction schedule.

Renewal SA says the pace comes from fixed floor plans that allow little variation and from mass produced layout modules. The homes were sold through HomeSeekerSA earlier this year.

Renewal SA also gave Hickinbotham early access to the site within Playford Alive’s Eastern Precinct. That let building proceed while civil works around the site carried on, covering water, electrical, roads and paths.

What’s next

The release frames the project as a trial, aiming to test different approaches with industry, learn what works, and find where the agency can clear barriers to quicker housing delivery.

Renewal SA says the homes were built as a mix of prefabricated modules and traditional methods, with set floor plans rather than custom variations. Source: Renewal SA release, 4 November 2026.