The Electric Vehicle Council issued the warning after federal, state and territory ministers met and agreed to delay updates to the National Construction Code.
The updated code, which would have come into effect in 2026, required new-build homes with car parks to feature electrical circuits and outlets ready to support vehicle recharging.
The code's delay follows discussions about increasing housing supply at the Economic Reform Roundtable in August, and after the federal government announced a 2035 target to reduce emissions by 62 to 70 per cent.
Reaching that environmental target would be difficult without widespread take-up of low-emission cars, Electric Vehicle Council chief executive Julie Delvecchio said, and Australians should be helped to make the switch.
Installing electrical infrastructure needed to recharge vehicles at home would make the transition smoother.
"Every home without these provisions will be more expensive to retrofit later, creating unnecessary barriers for Australian families wanting to make the switch to electric vehicles," she said.
"This is a missed opportunity to embed practical, low-cost electrification measures into our building standards at a time when urgent action is needed."
The updated National Construction Code was expected to introduce electrical requirements to support faster at-home electric car charging.
A preliminary analysis of the proposed changes noted that increasing a switchboard's capacity would cost $15 during construction or $600 afterwards, and installing a higher powered circuit would add $350 to costs.
"We know that 85 per cent of Australians will charge their EVs at home so ensuring (newly) built residences are EV-ready makes going electric more cost effective," Ms Delvecchio said.
"Many policy levers need to be pulled to ensure that one in every two cars on Australians roads is electric by 2035."
The pause on the National Construction Code will delay further changes until mid-2029, with an exception for "essential quality and safety measures".
But failing to build homes ready for electric cars was short-sighted, Swinburne University of Technology transport technology professor Hussein Dia said.
"EV-ready wiring and dedicated circuits in new homes is one of the simplest, lowest cost ways to support EV adoption," he told AAP.
"Delaying these provisions only shifts cost and inconvenience on to home-owners later when retrofitting will be more expensive."
The changes were unlikely to prevent motorists buying electric cars, Australian Electric Vehicle Association national president Chris Jones said, but would cause frustration.
"It might be a little more inconvenient but the benefits of an EV far outweigh the inconvenience," he said.
All transport accounts for 22 per cent of Australia's emissions, and passenger cars and light commercial vehicles contribute 10 per cent.
15°C