The challenge of finding a place to live, that you can afford to either buy or pay the rent on, has left increasing numbers of people homeless, living in vans, staying with friends or just popping up a tent in their local towns green spaces, train stations and car parks.
The increase in house prices and rents are a function of number of issues from people ‘flocking’ to the Northern Rivers and other regional centres during the covid pandemic, the rising cost of housing and land which is also impacted by the profitability of short term holiday letting, and the inability of councils to get developers to actually build approved housing.
10,000+ approved lots
For Tweed Shire there are over 10,000 approved lots waiting to be developed just between the approved developments of Kings Forest, Cobaki and Gales Holdings approvals in Kingscliff; yet there is no clear way for the council to push the developers into moving forward with these developments and provide the desperately needed housing.
Unanimous support for action
Regional Cities NSW mayors have called on the state government to take action on the worsening housing crisis at their meeting held in Wagga Wagga last week. Tweed Shire Mayor Chris Cherry put forward a motion seeking an urgent audience with both housing leaders to learn more about the NSW government’s investment plans for regional cities and how it will facilitate on-the-ground solutions over the next two years to provide for social and affordable housing. It further calls on them to outline any levers that may be introduced to incentivise approved private residential development being brought to market.
Regional Cities NSW is the peak body formed to lobby the state and federal governments over issues affecting regional communities in NSW. The mayors unanimously supported the motion to outline the worsening housing situation in the regions to NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson and CEO of the newly-formed Homes NSW, Rebecca Pinkstone.
Cr Cherry said the Tweed Shire, like many on the North Coast, was struggling with rising levels of homelessness and disadvantage due to a lack of social and affordable housing options.
‘The urgency of the housing crisis across regional cities is dire, with the lack of housing contributing to a rising inability of businesses to attract workers,’ Cr Cherry said.
‘We are seeing increased levels of homelessness in the Tweed, along with increased anti-social behaviour as people become more desperate. What we need are tangible outcomes on the ground.’
Cr Cherry said the Tweed’s housing affordability had significantly worsened following the COVID-19 epidemic where residents from the capital cities flocked to the Northern Rivers to escape lockdowns. The situation was further exacerbated after thousands of homes were either lost or damaged in the record flood of February-March 2022.
‘It is incredibly frustrating to hear about the worsening housing situation in our Shire when we have significant private residential developments already approved and ready to go but no lever to force developers to forge ahead in a timely manner,’ Cr Cherry said.
Time for action in regions
Chair of Regional Cities NSW Mathew Dickerson, who is also Mayor of Dubbo Regional Council, said the NSW government needs to stand up for the regions.
‘Regional cities have to think outside the square to deliver for their local community and we need to put all options on the table if we are to tackle this generational problem in any meaningful way,’ Cr Dickerson said.
‘In some ways it is a good problem to have: residents want to move to our regional cities. Unfortunately we simply don’t have enough housing for the people who want to make the move to regional locations.’
Housing-related issues Regional Cities NSW will include in its submission to the NSW government’s draft Budget include a call for:
- continued support for regional housing needs
- continue to work with Local Government to increase the supply of social and affordable housing
- continue support for incentive mechanisms to improve land banking and the Build to Rent measure
- annual indexing of developer contributions
- ongoing support for the Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme (LIRS)
- support the development of regional planners, and
- increase the density of existing affordable and social housing properties in regional NSW.
Regional Cities NSW represents the 15 main regional cities in NSW including Albury, Armidale, Bathurst, Broken Hill, Coffs Harbour, Dubbo, Goulburn Mulwaree, Griffith, Lismore, Maitland, Orange, Queanbeyan Palerang, Tamworth, Tweed Shire and Wagga Wagga.
Cr Cherry’s motion, unanimously supported, reads as follows:
‘Regional Cities write to the Minister for Housing Rose Jackson outlining the dire need for the uplift of social and affordable housing in our member regions and requesting an urgent audience with her and the CEO (Rebecca Pinkstone) of the newly formed Homes NSW about their investment plans in Regional Cities and how the NSW government will facilitate on the ground solutions within the next two years to provide for social and affordable housing, and levers that may be introduced to incentivise approved private residential development being brought to market.’
I think it may be time to look for the answer in a different place. investment in real estate has become an opportunity to increase wealth for large companies and individuals. what we need is public investment in affordable housing with rent based on cost not profit. why can such a view not be realised? something has to shift the purely money/ investment mindset for the benefit of of a few while everyone else suffers.
Agreed. We need to ban corporations from being allowed to buy property as well as overseas investors, just as some of the SE Asia countries have done.
Also there needs to be a limit of how many houses one can own.
That and we need to introduce European style rental laws that protect the tenant more. They need to be able to make their homes HOME. Real estate agents also need their power reduced in terms of absurd power tripping and trying to gouge on the side without the actual owner knowing.
A house is supposed to be a home, a sanctuary for the person actually living in there and said person needs to be able to afford to become a contributing member of the community. That is a part of what is killing the towns.
This has been going on for decades, century into century and it has to be stopped, it is the major cause of inflated land costs. Give the development application a time limit and bill them each month they fail to proceed, or make them submit another whole development application if it expires. Make the developers pay, if it cost them money, they will act.
We have finally voted all pro developer LNP majority out in council, NSW State and Federal Govt, that were responsible for this terrible planning mess we have had inflicted on us. If we cannot legislate some real common sense and fairness for society, back into the system we never will.
We cannot allow the LNP pro developers to ever again, get back into power anywhere, before real balanced comprehensive legislation is passed.
In the USA undeveloped land is subject to higher tax.
Air b and bs should be banned and there be plenty of housing this is political the Labor government wants big Australia and big housing in the region’s that have bugger all infrastructure to cope water is running out think dunoon dam etc the environment can’t cope now get rid of air b and bs and negative gearing and get billionaires to buy people houses as a tax write-off problem solved no more homelessness
Have a look at this mob! The best and brightest their communities have to offer? Local council really is a sick joke.