AGRN 1212 At-Home Caravans Program

The NSW Government is offering temporary use of caravans to residents in eligible areas whose homes have been damaged by a disaster and are uninhabitable.

The caravans will be placed on the resident’s private property for an initial 6 month lease agreement while they work on rebuilding or repairing their home, or arranging to relocate elsewhere.

The At-Homes Caravans program is open to homeowners living in the local government areas (LGA) included in the AGRN 1212 Natural Disaster Declaration whose homes are uninhabitable due to damage from the disaster, and who do not have flood insurance or their policy does not cover temporary accommodation.

The impacted home must be your primary place of residence, and your housing needs must be  urgent and not able to be resolved through any other means.

Your property will need to be assessed to make sure it is suitable.

You cannot apply for the At-Home Caravans Program if you have successfully applied for the Primary Producer Self-Contained Pod Program. 

The caravan will be provided under an initial 6 month hire agreement. You may be able to extend this up to 12 months based on your circumstances and meeting program criteria. You will need to contribute to the cost of hiring the caravan if you keep it for longer than 6 months.

You will need to agree to take part in planning to return home or move to other accommodation.

Caravans are provided through platforms that connect people to privately owned caravans available for hire. This means the type of caravan you receive will depend on what’s available at the time.

Find out more about the costs for the At-Home Caravans Program.

Apply through the Housing Recovery Service

To apply for a caravan, contact the Housing Recovery Service on 1800 695 043. The team will explain the program, check if you’re eligible and help you complete the application form.

You will need to provide the following documents with your application:

• A copy of your driver’s licence or other verified photo identification.
• Information about any home and/or contents insurance on the property.
• Proof of who owns the property where the caravan will be placed, such as a council rates notice or certificate of title.
• Details and digital photos showing where the caravan will go and how it can be accessed.
• A photo taken from across the road showing the full front of your property is helpful.
• If any part of the caravan will sit outside your property boundary, you must get special permission from Council before submitting your application.

We’ll also confirm the property is uninhabitable due to the disaster through NSW Government available data sources.

A site visit may also be necessary.

Property assessment

Your application will be reviewed to check if your property is safe and suitable for a caravan. You may be contacted for more information.

Confirm your booking

If your site is approved, you will be contacted to confirm your booking. Before the caravan can be delivered, you must sign and return your hire agreement.

Once that’s done, the caravan owner will get in touch to arrange a time to deliver and install your caravan.

Delivery and installation

You must be present at the property when the caravan is delivered and installed.

You and the caravan owner will complete a pre-hire condition report to confirm the caravan’s condition. This will be used again at the end of the hire period. The owner will also show you how to care for and use the caravan and will answer any questions you might have about the caravan. 

Where there are multiple approved dwellings on the same residential lot, and you own the land, each dwelling can apply as long as the landowner has given consent.

If there are shared or unapproved dwellings, one person needs to apply on behalf of all the homeowners on the lot.

‘Primary place of residence’ means the dwelling in which the applicant would normally reside (typically for 9 months of the year or more), at the time of the Natural Disaster and at which they maintain essential items of clothing, bedding, furniture and other items necessary for the provision of day-to-day shelter, comfort and sustenance.

Uninhabitable means that at the time of application the property is unfit or unsafe for residence as a result of the disaster, because of one or more of the following:

• Damage to the kitchen or bathroom which means either or both rooms are no longer sufficiently functional to enable basic cooking, food preparation, washing or sanitation. Damage must be structural in nature, rather than to appliances. It may include damage resulting in a lack of power, water or sewerage, or major damage to walls, roof or the floor.
• Damage that prevents the resident from being able to sleep in the home, due to major damage to walls, floors or the roof or bedrooms. Damage must be structural in nature, rather than to furniture, and there must be no other appropriate space available for sleeping (such as another bedroom, study or other room).
• Other significant safety or health hazards that makes it unsafe to live in the home, such as significant mould, electrical damage or broken/disturbed asbestos, or major structural damage to the roof or walls.
• The home cannot be inhabited while works are undertaken by the NSW Reconstruction Authority Disaster Relief Grant or other contractors.
• Other exceptional circumstances, as agreed by the NSW Reconstruction Authority. For example, where damage has rendered the home uninhabitable for a resident with specific disability requirements.
• A home or room may be partially damaged and considered habitable. 

Properties must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Minimum area of 8m long x 3m wide x 3m high, and the area is flat.
• There are no overhanding trees or other overhanging obstructions to the area, such as powerlines.
• The area is fully within the property boundary area, with no overhang across footpaths or onto median strips.
• An electricity and water connection is available at the property and within proximity to the location of the caravan. Where there are no existing or suitable existing services, it is the responsibility of the applicant to provide or install these services, unless otherwise agreed by the NSW Reconstruction Authority.
• Access to existing toilet facilities on site, or the ability for the caravan cassette toilet to be emptied via a septic tank inspection port on the property.
• There is road access to the site, suitable for the transportation of a caravan into the site.
• There are no gates, fences or other access limitations or obstructions to the site to allow for installation and removal of the caravan.
• The NSW Reconstruction Authority may have regard to other hazards on the site including bushfire and flood risk before approving the application. 

Find out more about the key expectations for maintaining a caravan in this program:

• Hire Costs for an At-Home Caravan, and
• Understanding Your Hire Agreement and Responsibilities.