Housing Policy

Principles

The Greens NSW believe that:

1. Every person should have access to affordable, appropriate, safe, secure, healthy,  environmentally responsible and community-oriented housing;

2. It is the responsibility of government to guarantee access to adequate and affordable housing in the public and not-for-profit sector, reversing the growing social inequality in Australia;

3. Access to housing should be free from discrimination, and people with special housing needs should be housed with adequate support;

4. Security of tenure is essential to people's quality of life and economic well-being, and is integral to the effective provision of social housing and the proper regulation of the private rental market;

5. Democratic tenant participation in decisions about social and emergency housing services is necessary for improved quality of tenant services; and

6. Housing should be constructed in accordance with Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) principles.

Goals

The NSW Greens will work towards:

7. The elimination of homelessness;

8. The provision of affordable and adequate housing for all;

9. Increased tenant participation in decisions about their own housing; and

10. A comprehensive and sustainable Public Housing Strategy which supports:

10.1 More low-income householders to purchase their homes;

10.2 Increases security of housing tenure generally; and

10.3 Better accessibility and housing planning that caters for priority needs including crisis and supported accommodation; and specific needs groups.

Details

Social and Affordable Housing

The NSW Greens will:

11. Prioritise social housing over non-essential government spending;

12. Acquire additional social housing stock immediately, and change the eligibility and allocation processes as stock expands;

13. Commit to an additional $ 900 million in the next triennium, to the purchase or construction of further public housing stock, with the view to minimising Department of Housing headlease arrangements in the private rental market;

14. Aim to establish a significant increase in units of subsidised housing stock within 10 to 15 years, including affordable housing available to people on low to moderate incomes;

15. Revitalise the Department of Housing and return it to being a mainstream housing provider;

16. End the use of Public Private Partnerships in housing development and management;

17. Remove toxic materials such as asbestos from buildings where possible or, in extreme cases, dismantling and replacing highly toxic buildings;

18. Encourage institutional investment in subsidised housing in conjunction with the Commonwealth Government, and may include:

18.1 Redirecting current private rental investment into low cost housing through changes to existing tax expenditures on such investment;

18.2 Investment from capital markets through housing bond issues; and

18.3 Grants and mortgage lending for not-for-profit housing agencies;

19. Provide capital grants to not-for-profit housing associations to provide subsidised housing (whether through rental or offering part or full home ownership) that house those earning up to 120% of the median income;

20. Apply a mandatory levy on commercial property developers for affordable housing in high-cost housing areas; and

21. Lobby the Federal Government t explore creating a single housing subsidy payment to replace the CSHA and Commonwealth Rent Assistance.

Private Rental Market

The NSW Greens will:

22. Legislatively strengthen tenants’ security of tenure;

23. Establish tenancy rights for boarders, lodgers and students living in university or college accommodation;

24. Ensure landlords have to justify rent increases that are above CPI;

25. Support measures to discourage speculative investment in residential property; and

26. Encourage tax incentives for landlords who agree to provide low-cost housing to low income people.

Sustainable Communities

The NSW Greens will:

27. Make available seeding grants to encourage the development of urban villages in consultation with local communities;

28. Encourage the Greens NSW to fund their own housing projects such as co-operatives; and

29. Use the planning process to develop clustered, mixed-use communities which encourage walking, cycling and public transport use.

Home Ownership

The NSW Greens will:

30. Expand the self-build scheme for low-income households;

31. Provide preference, incentives or additional support to self-build scheme participants where construction meets a 5-star energy rating;

32. Encourage part-equity home ownership provided by not-for-profit housing organisations;

33. Encourage the Commonwealth to extend housing assistance to low-income households paying mortgages on owner-occupied properties;

34. Assist groups to purchase community title land for low-cost housing; and

35. Assist groups to form limited or mixed-equity housing co-operatives.

Follow this link for The Greens NSW Housing Policy Summary.