Housing policy and sustainable urban development: evaluating the use of local housing strategies in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria

Summary

Local housing strategies (which analyse housing demand and supply, identify groups in housing need, and recommend future actions) have helped councils coordinate their activities, but implementation experiences have been varied. The main constraints to local government involvement in housing are: lack of community (and political) support; insufficient financial resources and staff expertise; legal uncertainty and barriers to using local planning mechanisms for affordable or more diverse housing types; poor state / local government collaboration.

Project Number: 60132
Research Theme: Demographics_and_Modelling
Project Leader: Gurran, Nicole
Funding Year: 2002
Research Centre: Sydney

Research & Policy Bulletin

Issue 035: Local Governments and Housing

Local governments play an important role in shaping housing policy through their planning and community service responsibilities and these underpin sustainable urban development.

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Description

Integrating housing policy objectives with the urban planning responsibilities of local governments is central to sustainable urban development. Local governments influence the private housing market through their planning and development control decisions, have strong connections to the local community, and are well positioned to facilitate a "whole of government" approach to housing outcomes (ALGA 1995, NHS 1991). Despite this, councils in Australia have traditionally been unwilling to recognise the housing impacts of planning decisions or to assume a proactive role in shaping housing outcomes. To encourage greater local engagement, 'local housing strategies' - incorporating an analysis of local housing supply, demand, future demographic and market trends, as well as recommendations for planning processes, land use plans and development regulations - have been promoted during the past decade (ALGA 1995, DILGEA 1991, DUAP 1995, 2001).

Since this time, many local councils across Australia have prepared housing strategies, in some cases as a result of direct state intervention through planning legislation. However, there has been little critical investigation of the extent to which such strategies have met expectations in terms of more proactive, whole of government participation in housing policy objectives. There are also questions about the extent to which the strategies have been implemented in practice or led to changed housing outcomes on the ground. This is reflective of a broader gap in research concerning the contemporary role of Australian local government in shaping housing outcomes.

The project aimed to address this research gap by: Analysing and comparing the housing related roles currently undertaken by local government in three Australian states; Critically evaluating the implementation of local housing strategies in relation to defined housing needs and objectives, and identifying models of excellence and innovation; Ascertaining the primary legislative, institutional, and political constraints to the implementation of housing strategies, as well as factors contributing to success; and, Reviewing the involvement of other local, regional, and state stakeholders / housing providers in the development and implementation local housing strategies and the implications of this for achieving a whole of government approach to sustainable urban development.

More Information

Final Report: No. 039: Housing policy and sustainable urban development: evaluating the use of local housing strategies in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria
472 KB PDF Document

Research and Policy Bulletin: Issue 035: Local Governments and Housing
92 KB PDF Document

Positioning Paper: No. 041: Housing policy and sustainable urban development: evaluating the use of local housing strategies in Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria
822 KB PDF Document

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