With average house prices in Port Phillip now estimated at $1.180M and average unit prices estimated at $540,000, this is a potent issue for voters and candidates alike.
It’s not just the cost of owning a home, it’s also rising rents, with average weekly rents for a basic unit or flat now reaching $450 per week. Renting a three-bedroom private home will set you back $850 per week. Airbnb and similar services, that we all love when travelling, are also affecting the availability and cost of long-term tenancies.
People most affected by the skyrocketing cost of housing are pensioners and welfare recipients; young people dependent on part-time employment; and average income workers, such as nurses, child care workers and emergency services workers.
Long-time residents are being forced out of St Kilda, Elwood and Albert Park, reducing the cultural, social and economic mix of our diverse community.
We have relatively low levels of state government funded and managed public housing in Port Phillip compared to other inner city areas due to a rich legacy of private rental housing stock, such as walk up flats and rooming houses. This meant that a strong supply of relatively cheap accommodation was available, reducing the level of government housing investment in our area.
As a soaring property market puts pressure on private sector rents, there's a strong case for governments to provide greater housing choice for low income residents, because the market clearly isn’t delivering that, anymore.
That doesn’t mean building more of the old style Housing Commission flats. That’s a model developed around the WW2 era. What it does mean is using great innovators like the Port Phillip Housing Trust as active players in the market, redeveloping properties and providing greater security for long-term tenants.
The Port Phillip Housing Trust is an amazing example of community-based social housing, where state and federal governments are key funding catalysts, along with local government and other funders, but with the properties, tenant mix, housing style and design determined and managed by local community-based organisations rather than a central government agency. Locally based Housing Associations are the key social housing agencies and they reflect local values and priorities, they are on a public register and are highly accountable and transparent.
The Port Phillip Housing Trust was established in 2005 as a partnership between Port Phillip Council and the Port Phillip Housing Association to grow the supply of community housing in the municipality. It was the logical extension of a relationship that had started in 1986, when the then St Kilda Council established the Association to manage the city’s community housing program.
Over the past decade, this partnership has delivered 265 affordable homes across all parts of Port Phillip at a cost of $89M, which is an average unit cost of about $330,000. That’s great value for money.
Council has contributed $6.5M or around seven per cent of the investment value. The other major contributors are State and Commonwealth Governments and the Port Phillip Housing Association itself.
The way it works, is that the Port Phillip Housing Association oversees the purchase and development of the properties, and the Port Phillip Housing Trust holds these properties in perpetuity as vital, secure assets for the community.
The Port Phillip Housing Association has 30 years of experience in delivering affordable housing in this city, with 1083 homes under ownership and management and another 101 dwellings in the pipeline. With an annual turnover of nearly $10M per year, 38 skilled staff and a highly professional and astute board of directors, it is a model social enterprise that many local governments across Australia are seeking to emulate.
Many people confuse privately owned and operated rooming houses, such as the Gatwick in Fitzroy Street, with community housing. There is a big difference. Significant drug, alcohol and mental health services need to be provided for the Gatwick residents. The future ownership and management of the property needs to be urgently resolved for the benefit of its residents and neighbours.
By contrast, community-based, highly accountable and transparent not-for-profit providers such as the Port Phillip Housing Association, St Kilda Community Housing and SouthPort Community Housing deliver strong, hands-on management with professional in-house maintenance teams. Increasingly, community-based managers are also providing employment and training for tenants.
Community-based social housing developments such as Kyme Place in Port Melbourne and those in Blessington Street and Chapel Street, are design award winners, with high environmental standards, strong maintenance records and a proven track record of providing safe and secure housing for residents that integrate with their neighbours and the broader community.
The current Council has committed to a significant pipeline of support to meet Port Phillip’s housing crisis, mainly through leveraging under-performing Council assets. I strongly support that commitment.
This won’t resolve the overall lack of local affordable housing but it will create more choice for key groups locked out of the market.
The Port Phillip Housing Trust has performed outstandingly and I look forward to a renewed, strong, ongoing partnership between the Port Phillip Housing Association and Council, through the Trust.