Does Affordable Housing really exist?
If you have recently tried to find a rental property you would say NO.
With rental vacancy rates being at a critical low across much of the country, this has caused rent prices in many areas to be at an all-time high, especially Regional areas like the Central Coast where vacancy rates in the first quarter of the year were under 1%.
The increase in tenant demand in the rental market is due to a few factors. One being the pandemic which has seen a noticeable increase in people from Sydney relocating to the Central Coast. Possibly driven by the increase in opportunities for people to work remotely or people trying to avoid lock down in heavily populated urban areas. Another contributing factor is the booming sales market across the Central Coast where first home buyers and downsizers have been purchasing a lot of rental properties and moving into them making these properties no longer available for tenants.
The recent rental market almost mirrored the crazed toilet roll buying situation when Covid first hit. Once word got out that the rental market was tightening, and the rental shelves started emptying so to speak, tenants started turning up at inspections with offers of $20, $30 and sometimes $50 above the listed asking price.
Does this mean there are no Affordable Rental Properties on the Central Coast?
The short answer is yes, there are Affordable Housing properties available on the Central Coast and Hunter Regions. These properties can be hard to find as there is limited stock available to the market, but they do become available from time to time.
Affordable Housing Developments are usually a small complex of units or townhouses and a portion of the properties in the building will be available for lease at a reduced rent generally around 75% of the market rent. These developments are usually leased through local real estate agents or Community Housing Providers (CHPs). The properties will be advertised at 75% of the market rent and you will need to meet the Affordable Housing criteria to apply for the property.
These types of rental properties are usually one or two bedrooms, self-contained and in most cases do not include parking.
How do I know if a property is an Affordable Housing property?
The price is usually the first indicator it will be a reduced rent compared to other properties on the market, the second indicator is the property description or advertisement it will usually contain something about Affordable Housing and meeting the Affordable Housing criteria.
Where do I find Affordable Housing properties?
You can find these properties on all the major real estate websites where property managers advertise their rentals. Additionally, there is a recently developed website called www.welcomemat.com.au that is a dedicated site just for Affordable Housing properties. This site can help tenants with their Affordable Housing journey. They have all the required information on their site to meet the Affordable Housing criteria and you can register on their site as a tenant so you can be alerted to properties as they become available for rent.
Key2 Realty uses www.welcomemat.com.au for all our Affordable Housing rental properties when they become available for lease.
What are the Affordable Housing criteria?
The criteria are aimed at tenants that have a low to middle income, key workers and Australian citizen or permanent residence. The Affordable Housing guidelines are there to ensure Affordable Housing properties go to tenants that have the most need and are not put into a rental stress situation where they can not afford the weekly rent payments.
All the information on Affordable Housing criteria for the Central Coast can be found on Key2 Realty’s website at www.key2realty.com.au/affordable-housing
For further information on the criteria’s www.welcomemat.com.au/eligibility-criteria
Searching for an Affordable Housing property will not be easy and they are usually a hotly contested commodity meaning you will be competing against a lot of people. Key2 Realty has seen anywhere from 20 to 60 people apply for one Affordable Housing property alone. Tenants need to make sure they meet the criteria relevant for the property they are applying for prior to attending any open for inspections this will save you time because if you do not meet the criteria, you can not apply for the property.
To sum up, there is affordable rental properties on the Central Coast, however, they are far and few between but there are further developments in the works across the Central Coast and Hunter regions. With encouragement from local and state governments private developers are looking at this space and how they can contribute by providing further developments to the marketplace.
How can I help as a property developer?
The short answer is developing more property under the Affordable Housing SEPP and offering it to the marketplace. Most developers have not considered Affordable Housing when developing their properties, but it can be a great long term secure investment option.
Key2 Realty is always looking to partner with build-to-rent developers and provide Affordable Housing stock to the marketplace. Key2 Realty has experience in this field and can assist developers with obtaining an Affordable Housing development application through their partnership with a Tier 1 Community Housing Provider.
To find out more about how Key2 Realty can help, check out our developer information page at www.key2realty.com.au/developer
or contact us on 02 4326 5566 or [email protected]