The Australian government has received applications for more than 27,000 dwellings in round two of the National Affordable Rental Scheme (NRAS).
In a bid to support jobs in the housing sector, a total of 596 incentives for new affordable rental properties have already been given the green light for construction to begin right now.
However, some are concerned that the “affordable” housing will result in less environmentally sustainable developments being built at a more affordable cost to the owners.
Jim Koopman, director at Allen Jack & Collier architects in Sydney, said with rental properties, there is no incentive for the owners to invest in sustainable design.
“The main difference between properties developed for ownership and those for rental is environmental sustainable design and technology. When renting a property that features power or water saving technology, the owner can not charge more for that dwelling, whereas, an owner builder is more likely to invest in those technologies for the long term savings.”
Under the scheme, proposals must “maximize affordable housing outcomes for tenants including building and design features that reduce the overall costs for tenants”, Koopman told Architecture & Design.
But, this does not guarantee sustainable design outcomes, and gives little details about what constitutes “affordable housing”, he said.
Vivienne Milligan, associate professor of the City Research Centre at the University of NSW, said the way the scheme is structured means that developers of smaller dwellings can claim the same incentives as those of larger ones “but receive a better return”.
The only incentive for investors and developers to spend more on things such as sustainable power or water supplies is that it may give them the competitive edge when applying for incentives from the government, Milligan adds.
“Applicants have to make the case to the government that they meet the criteria for the scheme,” she said.
Under a new scheme, the federal government will provide private investors with tax credits of $6,000 a year for ten years for new or refurbished properties that are rented at 20 per cent below the prevailing market level.
States and territories will also provide $2,000 per home, either through cash payments or via the provision of cut price land or concessions on stamp duty.
The system, which is modeled on a US scheme, is a departure from the department of housing’s style of rental-only properties. The department’s rental properties require a different approach to privately owned dwellings to deal with issues such as the durability and ownership of communal areas, Koopman explains.
However, for developments of more than 250 dwellings there are many cost effective alternatives developers can use to make them more environmentally sustainable says Koopman: “For instance, they can install grey water tanks for toilets and car washing facilities.”
