Community housing providers' responsibilities

Eligibility for community housing

Community housing providers (CHPs) have to follow the Community Housing Eligibility Policy when deciding who is eligible.

The policy says they must have suitable processes they use to decide if someone applying for social housing is eligible for it. If you apply, they have to:

• ask for proof that you are eligible
• keep your personal information private
• use specific rules set out by the government to decide if you are eligible.

If they participate in Housing Pathways they also must also follow Housing Pathways guidelines:

• when tenants or residents are applying
• when they're determining eligibility.

If you disagree with their decision, they must also have a suitable process in place to:

• tell you that you have the right to appeal their decision
• give you information about the process for making an appeal.

The eligibility criteria for other types of housing are different, including:

• affordable housing
• crisis accommodation
• transitional housing.

CHPs must also follow the Community Housing Access Policy. This policy lays out how they can decide who is given an available place in housing, and specifies how they should handle residents' and tenants' needs before, during, and at the end of a tenancy.

Deciding who is given an available place in housing

All CHPs:

• must have a suitable process in place to decide which eligible applicant is assigned housing.

CHPs for co-operative housing must:

• make their decision as to who is given a place keeping in mind that 65% of tenants must meet social housing income eligibility limits
• have the policy they use to decide who is given housing publicly available on their website

CHPs for social housing must:

• have the policy they use to decide who is given housing publicly available on their website
• update the NSW Housing register once a tenant is given an available place in housing
• (if they participate in Housing Pathways) follow Housing Pathways guidelines and their own allocation policies when they're making offers of social housing.

At the beginning of a tenancy

CHPs must:

• give new tenants or residents information that is easy to understand about:
  • the details of their housing
  • their rights to make a complaint or appeal a decision the CHP has made.
• have an appropriate agreement in place with the new tenant or resident. That agreement must give details about the terms and conditions of their tenancy or residency. An agreement like this with a tenant is also known as a lease or a residential tenancy agreement.
• provide the correct tenure for their tenancy or residency agreements.
  • For social or co-operative housing it must be 'continuous tenure'. This means that as long as a tenant follows the requirements of their tenancy agreement, they can stay in that property.
  • For transitional housing, agreements are fixed-term, meaning it is only for a specific period of time.
  • For affordable housing, agreements can be either fixed-term or continuous.

During a tenancy

CHPs must:

• have appropriate processes in place for managing appeals.
• keep their business records secure.
• keep tenant / resident personal information private.

At the end of a tenancy

CHPs must:

• have processes in place as to when and how they end a residential tenancy agreement (lease)
• be clear and open with tenants and residents about these processes
• give notice in writing to the resident or tenant:
  • explaining why their agreement is ending
  • giving a time by which the tenant or resident must leave.
• not routinely terminate agreements under Section 85 (for no cause)
• re-house the tenant in other appropriate accommodations if a social housing or co-operative housing tenancy is ended for certain reasons like the property being sold.

Deciding their rent policies

Community housing providers must follow the Community Housing Rent Policy when developing their policies about rent. They must:

• have a rent setting policy in place that ensures the affordability of their properties
• have a process in place to let tenants know of their rights and manage appeals
• keep their business information and records secure
• keep tenant and resident personal information private
• document any change to how they set rent, and the reasons, in their rent policy, which should be publicly available

Figuring out how much a resident / tenant should pay

The Rent Policy also says community housing providers must:

• follow a specific process to decide what the market rate for rent would be for a property
• determine the amount of rent subsidy a tenant is qualified for based on household income and the household's maximum entitlement to Commonwealth Rent Assistance
• ensure fees/rent are charged 'in accordance with a fair and transparent policy' if a tenant cannot pay due to lack of income
• ensure any rent payable to them does not exceed market rent
• ensure that If they implement policies or programs that require changing how they set rents, these do not result in an increase in the rent a tenant pays
• regularly review the level of rent their tenants pay to check they are still eligible for a subsidy at least every 6 months
• recalculate the level of rent tenants need to pay at least every six months for subsidised rent and annually for market rent
• immediately reassess a tenant's rent level if a tenant notifies the CHP of a change in their income or family circumstances.

For affordable housing

For affordable housing, the level of rent set must meet requirements set out by the NSW Affordable Housing Ministerial Guidelines.  

For affordable housing, Rent for National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) properties must be at least 20 percent below the prevailing market rent for those properties.  

For crisis accommodations

CHPs must not charge tenants in crisis accommodations for water usage

Crisis accommodation is subject to different fee/rent setting as it doesn't involve a tenancy agreement. Where a provider charges an accommodation or service fee to a resident in crisis accommodation, there should be a fair and transparent policy.

What is up to the provider

The policy says the CHP can decide:

• to vary the market rent rate in certain circumstances (for tenants' benefit)
• whether or not to require a rental bond
  • If bond payment is required, it shouldn't be a burden.
• whether or not to charge tenants to pay for water usage
  • Any water usage charges must follow the Water Charging guidelines.

For Aboriginal Housing Office properties

If community housing properties are owned by the Aboriginal Housing Office (AHO), the Community Housing Rent Policy applies. If it disagrees with the AHO's Aboriginal Community Housing Rent Policy, the AHO's policy prevails.

Deciding on water charges

Community housing providers must follow the Community Housing Water Charging Guidelines when deciding if and how much to charge for water.

These guidelines say community housing providers must:

• have a fair and transparent water charging policy and make it available at the start of a tenancy
• follow specific methods to calculate water usage charges
• list water usage charges separately to rent on a tenant's statement
• adjust tenants' water usage charges as needed if they leave the tenancy or an error is made
• exempt tenants in certain types of housing from water usage charges (crisis accommodation, congregate care, tenants who cannot afford rent)
• have an appropriate process in place to manage concerns, complaints or appeals from tenants in relation to water usage charging.

Concerns about the fairness and transparency of a provider’s water charging policy in compliance with the Regulatory Code can be referred to the Registrar of Community Housing.

What is up to the provider

CHPs may grant a water usage allowance to households that need it for a specific reason.