Affordable Housing Developer Toolkit:
The Affordable Housing Developer Toolkit has been produced by the SA Housing Authority (the Authority) to help developers and other industry professionals build affordable housing and provide the housing product that creates strong and diverse communities. It is designed to complement your due diligence and feasibility studies. Past experience shows good planning and outcomes are achieved when affordable housing is considered from the earliest stages of a development application.
This toolkit is designed to help decisions around dwelling type and mix, addressing the development process step-by-step. To help you deliver affordable housing, you can start at the beginning of this toolkit and work your way through the document. Alternatively, if you have successfully used planning incentives, gained development approval, and are ready to list affordable housing on the market, you can refer to the toolkit to learn more about the marketing benefits of the Authority’s Home Seeker SA affordable homes website.
As a developer, you may choose to engage the services of other professionals to explore development options. A register of accredited professionals can be found on the Plan SA website. More information about the State Government’s role in affordable housing delivery can be found in the affordable housing section of the Authority’s website.
Affordable housing should be considered as one of the ways that land can be developed for residential purposes to meet growth demands and diversity of dwelling types across South Australia. State Planning Policy 6 – Housing Supply and Diversity acknowledges housing as an essential part of people’s health and well-being. Affordable housing is expected to be housing that supports liveability, and your development should consider innovative layouts, design, and materials as part of your feasibility considerations.
Affordable housing can be delivered as:
• Homeownership
• Build to rent
• Rent to buy
• Retirement villages
• In partnership with a Community Housing Provider
• Housing for people with a disability in certain circumstances
• Other types of affordable rental; or
• Other innovative solutions as negotiated.
Affordable housing is accommodation where a low- or moderate-income household pays no more than 30% of their annual income to rent or buy. This ensures that affordable housing is appropriate for the needs of a range of very low to moderate-income households and priced so that these households are also able to meet other basic living costs such as food, clothing, transport, medical care, and education. In South Australia, the criteria to determine what is considered affordable housing is set out under the South Australian Housing Trust Regulations 2010 and updated regularly via publication of a Notice in the Government Gazette.
In brief, it defines affordable housing as a dwelling or land where:
• a developer or landowner is legally obliged to ensure that the provision of affordable housing complies with State Government requirements as set out in the Government Gazette Notice; and
• it is offered for sale to an eligible home buyer through the HomeSeeker SA program at or below a nominated affordable housing price point or
• it is provided for affordable lease or rent by an eligible rental provider such as community housing providers, the SA Housing Trust, or an affordable rental provider that has a legally binding agreement with the relevant Minister.
Affordable housing has important social, environmental, and economic benefits for South Australia and is supported by a range of State Government policies and initiatives. These initiatives extend to developers and include financial incentives, tax reductions, planning concessions, and marketing benefits. These are all intended to provide for improved development feasibility and quicker sales while providing livable outcomes for low to medium-income households.
Affordable housing incentives include:
• Allowances for increased height and density, and reduced car parking ratios;
• Reduced land tax; and
• Access to the Home Seeker SA website to provide free property listings to reach potential buyers.