Housing Now! has just released a damning report showing that 55% of Greater Sydney LGA's would need to increase their housing contributions by more than 50% to even have a chance of hitting their housing targets.

Speaking on the matter, Former NSW State Government Chief Planner and our very own Gary White was quoted in the Daily Telegraph today referencing the practice of councils deliberately rejecting DAs knowing that courts will later overrule decisions, as a contributing factor to housing delivery challenges.

Solve Property Group’s Northern Rivers Housing Forum has been featured by Australian Property Investor Magazine.

An article by Craig Francis.

Marked by an ageing population and with a determination “not to be the Gold Coast”, the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales has found itself with an affordability problem, housing shortages, soaring rents and something of an identity crisis.

At the recent Northern Rivers Housing Forum held in Kingscliff, acclaimed demographer Bernard Salt AM, and Gary White, former Chief Planner for the Queensland NSW state governments and now Chief Planner at Solve Property Group, addressed some of the biggest issues confronting the region.

We recently hosted the Northern Rivers Housing Forum, an initiative aimed at tackling the housing crisis in the region. The forum brought together key stakeholders, counsellors, community leaders, and experts to discuss the housing challenges faced by communities in the region.

The forum highlighted the growing concern over housing affordability, availability, and delivery in the Northern Rivers area. A report completed by Solve Property Group found that housing affordability has significantly declined, with rental costs increasing in excess of 35-50% across the region, while the cost to service mortgages continues to grow. With limited options for affordable housing, the need for innovative strategies and collaborative efforts has become increasingly urgent.

The NSW Productivity Commission has warned in a new housing paper that Sydney is losing some 7,000 people aged 30 to 40 a year. “Sydney is at risk of becoming a city with no grandchildren if we don’t meaningfully address the housing crisis”. The paper found that between 2016 and 2021, Sydney lost twice as many people aged 30 to 40 as it gained. 35,000 came to Sydney, but 70,000 left. It also found that while Sydney has among the highest average wages in Australia, over recent years it has consistently lost population to other states and regional NSW. Approximately two out of every three departures are from the working-age population – that is, those aged between 25 and 64, it’s not only ‘grey nomads’ who leave Sydney.

Solve Property Group was asked to consider on the back of this housing paper, is there a disparity in dwelling sizes and household demographics? Here is a snapshot of our insights.

Housing Australia have now opened round one funding under the Housing Australia Future Fund Facility (HAFFF) and National Housing Accord Facility (NHAF). These Federal Government initiatives are focussed on improving housing outcomes for Australians and will collectively support the delivery of 20,000 new social and 20,000 new affordable homes across Australia over five years. The HAFF is a $10 billion investment fund, the income from which will provide disbursements used to deliver the Federal Government's housing commitment. The Application period for round one funding is from 15 January 2024 until 2:00pm (AEDT) on 22 March 2024.

Tweed Shire Council have released a Draft Options Paper, Growth Management and Housing Strategy. It acknowledges that the Tweed is the fastest growing LGA in NSW with an additional 31,182 persons projected in the next 20 years, reaching 128,333 persons by 2041. The Tweed is in a housing crisis, experiencing, as much of Australia is, housing not meeting community needs.