PUBLIC HOUSING — SALE AND DECOMMISSIONING
1056. Hon Dr BRAD PETTITT to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Housing:
(1) How many public housing homes
were sold or decommissioned in 2020–21?
(2) How many public homes does the
government intend to sell or decommission in 2021–22?
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) Upon coming
to government, the public housing portfolio consisted of a significant number
of dilapidated buildings that were unsafe,
expensive to maintain and not fit for purpose. The Department of Communities
sold 140 dwellings and demolished 219 in
2020–21. Public housing may be sold or demolished for a number of reasons, including sales to tenants, urban and
regional renewal to help revitalise communities or due to natural or
man-made—that is not a term I would use—hazards such as fire.
(2) The McGowan
government is investing $2.1 billion into social housing over the next four
years, which includes the record investment
of $875 million as part of the 2021–22 state budget, the single largest
investment into social housing in the history of the state. As part of the
record investment into social housing, $12.8 million has been allocated to
carry out building assessments on public housing and Government Regional
Officers' Housing assets, which will inform future maintenance,
refurbishments and disposal decisions. This, along with maintenance funding under the social housing
economic recovery package and business-as-usual funding, will assist to
keep properties stay in the system longer. The Minister for Housing continues
to investigate all options to accelerate and
fast track social housing delivery, including the use of modular and timber
construction methods. As of 31 October 2021, over 650 social housing properties
are under construction.