Let’s be honest: Our housing system in Australia isn’t working for everyone. Not the way it’s supposed to, and not the way it used to.

Across all levels of government, we need to do more to ensure a fair deal for everyone – to work towards a world where everyone can access affordable and secure housing.

At a state level, there are a few things we can do:

• Work with other stakeholders to make sure we’re building more homes, faster.

• Provide more support for renters.

• Ban dodgy practices that hurt renters.

• Help more people to achieve the dream of home-ownership.

• Deliver more social housing.

• Work with support organisations to help those in need.

We need action on each of these areas, and I have been advocating for that within the government since I was elected in 2020. I was extremely glad to see each of them covered by Miles Government’s recently announced Homes for Queenslanders Plan.

This plan is vital to our future as a state and as a community and was delivered with the support of a wide range of stakeholders.

Here are some of the key aspects of the plan:

Social Housing Investment

Based on independent modelling by the experts at AHURI, the Social Housing Big Build will invest an $1.25 billion of additional funding to deliver more than 53,000 new social homes right across our State to meet our future social housing needs.

Not only will our social housing big build deliver more secure housing for Queenslanders, but it sets up a generation’s worth of secure construction jobs so that people can live and work in the communities that they love

Homelessness

Organisations who help Queenslanders experiencing homelessness will receive a 20 per cent increase for the next 18 months to meet demand for frontline and specialist homelessness services as part of an almost $390 million increase in funding for homelessness support.

We’re also making sure there are more people working on the frontline, with Homes for Queenslanders also funding and supporting a two-worker model for six after-hours Specialist Homelessness Services – something organisations and unions have been calling for.

In addition to a mammoth boost in funding, we’ve announced an independent review into the whole homelessness service system.

The Review will assess the effectiveness of Queensland’s current response to homelessness and opportunities for improvement, including for people living in urban, rural, regional and remote Queensland.

Renters

Rent bidding will be banned and penalties will be enforced against real estate agents who engage or encourage these practices.

It’s already illegal for real estate agents to ask you to pay above the asking prices, but we know it still happens and it’s not illegal for renters to offer to pay above the asking price. It means that renters feel pressured to offer. So we’re cracking down on both and making rent bidding illegal full stop.

The government will also establish a portable bond scheme allowing tenants to transfer their bonds when relocating from one rental property to another.

While this scheme is being established, a Bridging Bond Loan product will be introduced to assist households to afford the upfront cost of a new bond, pending release of their old bond.

A new rental sector Code of Conduct will be explored with all parties to crack down on dodgy and unprofessional practices and ensure better protections for renters.

Renters’ rights will be strengthened with a number of important changes to Queensland’s rental laws.

We will also double the number of specialist customer service staff in the state’s 21 Housing Service Centres by hiring an additional 42 RentConnect officers.

These vital frontline workers will help connect renters with the supports and services they need to get and keep a rental home.

Through Homes for Queenslanders, $160 million will be invested in a Renters Relief Package over five years.

Incentivising Infill Fund

The Miles Government has released the next part of our bold new housing plan, with a $350 million to incentivise infill housing development and deliver more housing faster.The new fund will encourage more affordable housing developments close to jobs, services, and in communities where people want to live. 

In addition to the Incentivising Infill Fund we’re also:

• Piloting a Ground Lease Model to open up more state-owned land for housing

• Creating a new State Facilitated Development Team to speed up planning and development processes, backed by an additional investment of $35 million.

• Managing Five Pilot Projects to test different models of planning, with targets of 20% affordable housing. We will invite proposals for the first tranche of projects soon.

Helping Queenslanders Purchase Their First Home

We have doubled our first home owner grant to $30,000 for new homes until 30 June 2025. This is the largest scheme in the country. By targeting new homes, we’re also encouraging more supply into the market – which is the number one thing that will make housing more affordable in the long term.