FAQs

Affordable housing is rental housing available to very low to moderate income households. It is priced so these households are also able to meet other basic living costs such as food, clothing, transport, energy, medical care and education. 

Affordable housing is not the same as social housing. Social housing is government subsidised, long-term, rental housing for people on very low incomes with a housing need. Social housing includes public, community and Aboriginal housing. Housing need may include homelessness, experience of family violence or other complex needs such as medical or age-related support needs. People accessing social housing are very unlikely to be able to afford private rental accommodation.

Affordable housing is rental housing for very low to moderate income households. Affordable housing is managed more like a private rental property, but there are eligibility criteria, and the managers are mostly not for profit community housing providers. Rents are below market rates. When there is a vacancy for an affordable housing property, this is usually advertised, and people apply to the manager as they would if they were applying for a property in the private rental market. 

Housing affordability is defined as the relationship between housing expenditure, such as mortgage payments or rent, and a household’s income. Having housing that is affordable means households can access an adequate standard of housing without unduly compromising their other needs.

A household is taken to be a very low income household, low income household or moderate income household if it has a gross income within the following ranges of percentages of the median household income for Greater Sydney:

(A)  very low income household—less than 50%

(B)  low income household—50–less than 80%

(C)  moderate income household—80–120%.

Affordable housing rents vary and are set either as a discount to the market rent or as a percentage of a household’s income.

Where rent is set as a discount of the market rent, the discount is usually between 20% and 25% compared to the market rent for a similar property in the area.

Where rent is set as a proportion of a household’s income, households may be charged between 25 and 30% of their before tax income for rent, although providers may charge slightly more in some circumstances.

A Council-led guideline that’s sets out how, where and at what rate development contributions can be collected by Councils for affordable housing. 

As part of developing an affordable housing contribution scheme and preparing a planning proposal to amend an LEP to levy developer contributions, councils will need to prepare and provide evidence that affordable housing contribution rates are viable. Council will need to provide the Department with the evidence and assumptions used to determine the affordable housing contribution rate. This is to enable the assessment and review of the proposed affordable housing contribution rates to ensure that the rates are viable and would not impact on development feasibility and overall housing supply. 

The Affordable Housing Contribution Scheme Working Party is made up of community representatives, community housing representatives and those from industry bodies in the housing sector alongside five Councillors. The working party provides Council with advice on the practical implication of the scheme.