Victoria Invests $77 Million To Boost Housing Supply
A $77.2 million investment to boost the supply of quality rooming house accommodation and stricter regulation of operators are part of a new package announced today to improve rooming house standards and support vulnerable Victorians.
Premier John Brumby joined Housing Minister Richard Wynne, Consumer Affairs Minister Tony Robinson and Member for Albert Park Martin Foley, to open a newly refurbished 12-unit facility in St Kilda and announce the Government’s response to the Rooming House Standards Taskforce report.
Mr Brumby said the package would improve the quality of rooming houses and ensure the most vulnerable Victorians had access to safe and comfortable accommodation.
“While many rooming house operators are fair and reputable, there is growing evidence of illegal and unscrupulous behaviour by some landlords, which is why the Government is taking action,” Mr Brumby said.
“I asked for the Rooming House Standards Taskforce to be established, bringing together tenants and operators of community and privately-run rooming houses to identify ways to work together to improve the quality of housing for our most vulnerable Victorians.”
The Victorian Government is adopting all of the 32 recommendations made by the Taskforce and will now consult with the sector to determine the best way to implement the recommendations, which include:
- Mandatory registration of operators and premises;
- Improving standards of safety and amenity;
- Strengthening compliance and enforcement; and
- Increasing the supply of alternative rental housing.
Steps to implement the recommendations include:
- Ensuring the registration of both rooming house operators and rooming house premises;
- Introducing new laws to improve safety and security in all Victorian rooming houses;
- Investing $7 million for alternative crisis accommodation for families with children;
- Increasing the power of Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) to act on rooming house operators that are in breach of their responsibilities;
- Providing $50 million to build 200 new homes for families needing crisis accommodation thanks to Commonwealth Nation Building funding;
- $13.8 million to buy and lease new, not-for-profit rooming homes;
- $1 million to provide support for families to move out of rooming houses and into social housing; and
- $2.5 million to help rooming house residents find long term, stable, private rental accommodation.
Mr Brumby said as a result of the package, people who used rooming houses would be offered greater protection, with stronger laws, more inspectors and a central register of all operators for the first time.
Mr Wynne said the Taskforce was set up in July this year to examine ways of governing the boom in privately run rooming houses.
“The Taskforce included representatives of tenants, housing and community groups as well as local government to ensure everyone who has a role in improving the sector could make a contribution to the reforms,” Mr Wynne said.
“The Government will now consult with the sector and then introduce a number of legislative and regulatory improvements to strengthen the policing of the sector.”
Groups represented in the Taskforce included the Tenants Union of Victoria, Council of Homeless Persons, Victorian Council of Social Services, Municipal Association of Victoria, Registered Accommodation Association of Victoria, St Kilda Rooming House Issues Group, Yarra Community Housing, Community Housing Federation of Victoria and the Real Estate Institute of Victoria.
Mr Robinson said rooming houses had traditionally been located in inner Melbourne, but were now being seen in middle and outer suburbs.
“There are currently around 500 registered rooming houses in Victoria accommodating around 4500 people, according to the latest census,” Mr Robinson said.
“The Government has already strengthened the standards for operators and newly recruited inspectors in Consumer Affairs Victoria will continue to work with Councils in discharging their responsibilities to inspect rooming houses and enforce compliance with the standards.”
Mr Robinson said the new 12-person CAV compliance team had inspected 138 suspected rooming houses in joint operations with local councils.
“These inspections have found 25 unregistered premises. Ten have been registered and another 15 are in the process of registration. Owners and operators have also been served with more than 90 statutory building or health notices or orders by councils,” he said.
“Since the inception of the CAV compliance team, two rooming houses operators have been charged by Maribyrnong City Council with offences under the Health Act relating to operating a rooming house while unregistered.”
Topics: Australia, Economy, Governance, housing, housing package, quality rooming house accomodations, Rooming House Standards Taskforce, safe accomodation, Victoria, vulnerable Victorians
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