The Australian obsession with home ownership and the property market is well known. But while housing might be the ‘talk of town’, it often over-focuses on some aspects at the detriment of others. Ownership at all cost over housing security, accumulating wealth over supporting wellbeing and building community, general property development over supply of truly affordable housing to the people who need it most. At Shelter NSW, we do our best to shape and influence the conversation around housing towards the true solutions to the housing affordability crisis, avoiding distractions and red herrings.
Shelter NSW is pleased to have been involved and consulted around the development of the Community Housing Providers (Adoption of National Law) Amendment Bill 2025. The new legislation will provide the NSW Government with greater oversight of the affordable housing being delivered, and ensure it is managed in accordance with affordable housing regulations, in particular regarding rent setting and allocation. John Engeler, Shelter NSW CEO, was quoted in the NSW Government media release:
“Shelter NSW is greatly encouraged by this announcement giving immediate operational certainty. This legislation provides protection for the growing area of affordable housing, especially for those on lower incomes.”
John was also a guest on the ABC Illawarra Morning Show with Nick Rheinberger on the 3rd of June to talk about the bill and more broadly how NSW can continue to deliver more housing that is truly affordable to people living on lower incomes. John spoke about the need for clear definitions and good oversight of affordable housing delivery and management. He said that the new registrar of affordable housing properties would assist in doing this, and that ‘most importantly, we will know over time that it continues to go to the right people in the right places’.
Listen to John on the ABC Illawarra morning show, from 7mn30s to 17mn.
Since we’ve mentioned the ‘talk of town’, it would be hard not to talk about artificial intelligence (AI). With rapid and impressive technological development, many professionals and decision makers are pondering how AI will affect their field in the future, including housing professionals. John Engeler briefly spoke on ‘AI to help to develop housing solutions’ on ABC Radio AM. Don’t be misled by the title, Shelter NSW has not yet joined the choir of those who think AI will solve everything – and even more so political issues! The solutions to the housing crisis are well known, and they require political will and ambitious action to rebalance the housing system towards people who rent their home, first home buyers, and those living on lower incomes. No need to use artificial intelligence to figure this one out. One thing AI could help with, however, is gathering and collating data from different systems, such as planning, legal titles, tenancy regulation (e.g. bond data) and beyond. As John said, this is a ‘no-brainer’, providing more time and resources for policy makers to deal with innovative policy and tough decision making. Listen to the full segment on ABC Listen.