State Government: Housing Policy, Directions, and Funding

The Victorian Government has, for a number of years, been growing the community housing sector through the development of regulatory infrastructure and the provision of capital funding.

It has identified community housing as an excellent vehicle for the development of new affordable housing stock and, increasingly, the redevelopment of its public housing portfolio. In part, this strategic direction has been driven by the community housing sector’s capacity to deliver more housing for the taxpayer’s dollar compared to public housing.

In exchange for requiring all community housing organisations receiving funds or managing its stock to become registered and regulated either as a Housing Association or as a Registered Housing Provider, the Victorian Government has shown tremendous confidence in the community housing sector via the following actions: 

• A large allocation of funds to Housing Associations and Registered Housing Providers
• The requirement that all private developers partner with community housing organisations when bidding for public housing re-developments
• The transfer of ownership of publicly-managed stock to Housing Associations