Page 5415 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 16 November 2010
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However, the objective of creating a diverse and growing community housing sector will need to be carefully balanced against the risks of transferring title of potentially up to $20 billion worth of public housing asset to community housing providers nationally. This investment in the community housing sector must deliver sustainable growth. Sustainable growth means that providers are able to provide high quality and responsive housing services into the future and have the portfolio and rent structures to enable it.
It means that providers are able to maintain and manage their assets. It also means that they are able to utilise their rental income stream and asset base to increase their portfolio. The best option will be a phased-in approach of community housing progressively assuming responsibility for a tenancy management role up to 35 per cent of social housing stock over the next five years, with transfer of title contemplated once effective regulatory systems are firmly in place and providers establish a clear record against agreed performance benchmarks.
Substantially greater tenancy management responsibility will need to be underpinned by a strong regulatory framework and integrated waiting lists for social housing at each place in each jurisdiction. The ACT, like other jurisdictions, will grow the community housing sector under the national building economic stimulus plan, and the ACT is one of the first jurisdictions in Australia to pass legislation for a regulatory framework, preceded only by Victoria and New South Wales.
The framework will oversight support provided to CHC Affordable Housing under the government’s affordable housing action plan 2007. It will also protect the dwellings constructed and/or managed by affordable and community housing providers under the nation building and jobs package.
These measures will provide protection for government assets, tenants and the viability of the sector and provide reassurance to investors. The ACT’s focus for community housing is to ensure viability and capacity for growth, which contributes to increased housing supply overall, underpinned by strong regulation. This is consistent with the ACT’s own affordable housing action plan.
Using the commonwealth’s stimulus funding and the land provided for free by the ACT government, Housing ACT will deliver an additional 421 dwellings by July 2011. With the targeting of Housing ACT’s normal capital program, the total number of dwellings delivered increases to 507. Two hundred and ninety seven of the dwellings will be constructed on the community facilities land transferred to Housing ACT from the ACT government at no cost to Housing ACT. Control of 109 of these newly constructed units on the community facilities land will pass to the community housing sector. This will provide a significant injection of properties into the community housing sector and enable new, national providers to enter the ACT market and enhance sector capacity. This includes the Salvation Army and Blue CHP.
We must be clear that the stock transfer alone will not deliver effective and efficient community housing. There is considerable work still to be undertaken both within the ACT and nationally to ensure the quality of community housing is adequate and that it
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