Antipoverty Centre submission to the the Housing Australia Future Fund and National Housing Supply and Affordability Council Inquiry

We should not be condemned to housing insecurity and the whims of landlords for the rest of our
lives. There is not a housing supply problem, there is a property hoarding problem. The Housing Australia Future Fund seems intentionally designed to sound more significant than it is. The fund cannot grow without inequality increasing. It is an inherently regressive way to fund housing for people on lower incomes– both in and out of waged work.

Recommendations;

  • The Antipoverty Centre supports a truly independent statutory advisory body, however the proposed does not achieve this in its current form. The National Housing Supply and Affordability Council Bill 2023 must be substantially amended to enhance its independence, incorporate expertise from people directly affected by housing stress and homelessness and improve transparency.
  • Grants should prioritise funding for acquisition and development of housing in low socioeconomic areas and those with high levels of housing stress among low income renters. The bill should specify minimum targets for the proportion of grant funds to be allocated for public housing. A dedicated commitment to public housing should be based on a target that would return public housing density to its mid-90s level of 5% in the medium term, with targets to be revised up in the longer-term.
  • Community housing providers with a record of mistreating or placing severe restrictions on tenants, providing substandard homes or failing to carry out adequate maintenance should be precluded from receiving grants, with a formal resident consultation structure developed to ensure only suitable providers receive funds.
  • All activities related to planning for affordable and social housing, as well as in the oversight and regulation of community housing providers. The Housing Supply and Affordability Council should comprise at least 25% people who currently live in or need access to affordable, public and community housing.

You can read the full submission below and the related media release here.

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