Anglicare’s Western Australian office has urged its state government to maximise its share of the Housing Australia Future Fund, declaring the allocated capital would make a “material impact on the deficit of housing in this state.”

The calls made by the community services group are backed by independent modelling it has commissioned, which indicates a minimum of 6,000 new social and affordable dwellings could be provided in the next decade if the state opts to utilise the fund.

WA’s lack of social and affordable housing is at a critical point. Anglicare data indicates there is an unmet need of almost 40,000 social and 20,000 affordable homes in WA. Some 19,000 households are on a social housing waitlist, with an average wait time of two years before moving into a home.

“This model for housing finance would provide an ongoing stream of funding, it would provide certainty to housing providers, and it would mean that over time we would start to make a material impact on the deficit of housing in this state,” says Anglicare WA CEO, Mark Glasson.

“More than $20 billion has been banked in the life of this current Labor McGowan-Cook Government. What we are saying is give us 5 percent of that. You hang onto the money, but give us the dividend – and the legacy of that decision would work for families in WA forever.

“It’s not a silver bullet but we think it is a sensible approach to get more houses on the ground.”

Glasson is hopeful the $3.7 billion surplus announced by the WA Government in late December will alleviate some housing stress. While he is complimentary of the government’s efforts to boost housing supply – $2.5 billion over the last three years – Glasson is concerned about meeting demand.

“WA is not alone in its affordable housing challenges, but it is unique in its fiscal position,” he says.

“The housing crisis we are in now has not come about in the last two or three years. This has been building for 20 or 30 years, maybe even more. When you look at the economic performance of this state over the last five or six years and you look at the number of families who have insecure housing and hungry children, we have to ask ourselves some serious questions.

“A WA Housing Future Fund provides a once in a lifetime opportunity to build a legacy for the state and to provide safe, affordable accommodation for Western Australians into the future.”

Image: Landcorp’s White Gum Valley development.

Jarrod Reedie

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