Appealing a decision – public housing

Many decisions made by social housing providers can be reviewed. If you think a decision is wrong, you usually have 3 months to request a review. Here are the steps you can take.

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Before you request a review

When a social housing provider makes a decision, they must:

consider your individual circumstances
apply policy
give the reasons for the decision.

If you think a decision is wrong, start by talking to the person who made the decision or another Homes NSWstaff member.

If you are still unsatisfied, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed. A review is a formal process that checks whether the right decision has been made on a matter.

Confirm that the decision can be reviewed

Decisions that can be reviewed include:

decisions made under Housing Pathways about:
- applications for Housing Assistance, including applications for transfer
- Private Rental Assistance products.
decisions that affect Homes NSW tenants such as:
- applications for recognition as a tenant
- first and second strike notices for antisocial behaviour
- rent subsidy calculations and other tenancy-related decisions.
decisions that affect former tenants of social housing such as:
- former social housing tenant debts
- former tenant classifications.

Social housing providers cannot review NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) decisions.

Check the timeframe to appeal your issue

For most issues, you must lodge an appeal within a certain time from the date of the original decision.

Timeframe to appeal from date of decision	Appeal issue
no limit	Former social housing tenant or category.
within 2 business days	Eligibility for: initial temporary accommodation emergency temporary accommodation.
within 7 calendar days	end PRS assistance type and length of public housing lease after offer of lease extension if client is on 3 or 6 month fixed term Homes NSW recognition as a tenant.
within 14 calendar days	end Rent Choice Assistance following review first offer of alternative social housing made to a Homes NSW tenant being relocated for portfolio management purposes offer of alternative social housing made under Section 149 change of circumstances following lease review for those on 2, 5 or 10 year lease.
within 21 calendar days	Homes NSW-issued first and second strike notices for antisocial behaviour end rental subsidy for Homes NSW tenant rent, Private Rental or Rent Choice subsidy adjustment or cancellation after an investigation into non-disclosure.
within 30 calendar days	type and length of lease offered when entering public housing type and length of public housing lease after offer of lease extension if tenant is on 2, 5 or 10 year lease eligibility to continue in public housing under Section 145 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010, for those on 2, 5 or 10 year lease.
within 3 months of original decision	All other appeals.

For full details, please read the Homes NSW appeals policy.

Apply for a review online or in person

To have the decision reviewed, fill out the Review of Decisions - First Tier Application online.

You can also download a copy of the first tier appeal application form to fill in.

Or visit any local housing office.

If you need help completing the form, ask a social housing provider staff member.

You can also ask someone else to do this on your behalf, for example, a relative, friend or community worker.

What to expect from the review process

An officer who did not make the decision will do the review and make a recommendation.

The review will consider any new, relevant information and re-examine the original decision to ensure:

procedural fairness was adhered to
policy was interpreted correctly and fairly
all circumstances and relevant information were fairly and properly considered.

A delegated officer will then decide if the recommendation is correct.

If you believe the decision made after the review is still incorrect, you can ask for a second level appeal. This will be done by an independent body - the Housing Appeals Committee.