About community housing

Community housing is a type of social housing. Social housing is also provided in NSW through public housing and through the Aboriginal Housing Office. Community housing tenants are tenants of the housing provider, not tenants of Homes NSW.

All types of social housing offer secure, affordable rental housing for people on very low to moderate incomes, who have a housing need.

Eligibility

People who are eligible for public housing are also eligible for community housing.

 Check if you are eligible for social housing

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

The policy spells out what they must do when you apply for housing.

If you disagree with their decision, the policy says they must also tell you about your right to appeal and how to do that.

Learn more about what community housing providers are required to do

Who uses community housing?

Approximately 28,000 households live in community housing in NSW. Community housing tenants have the same rights and responsibilities as public and private tenants.

People living in community housing have very low to low incomes and are unable to meet their housing needs in the private rental market.

About community housing providers

Homes NSW and community housing organisations have been working together to develop a range of affordable housing services. This helps ensure more people have access to affordable housing.

Registered community housing providers are generally not-for-profit organisations. They are usually managed by a Board of Directors. They manage the properties that they own and also manage other properties:

• owned by the government, or
• rented from private landlords with government funding.

They may also manage properties for various entities on a fee for service basis.

As at 30 June 2024, there were 231 registered community housing providers operation in NSW, including:

• housing associations
• housing co-operatives
• churches
• other community organisations.

Community housing providers manage around 49,516 properties. These include general, transitional and crisis properties. This accounts for approximately 30% of the social housing in New South Wales.

Properties managed by NSW community housing providers over time

Homes NSW also monitors the performance of community housing providers. This helps ensure they continue to provide quality services to tenants.

Types of community housing providers

There are a number of different types of community housing providers, including:

• specialist homelessness services
• general social housing providers
• services for renting privately.

Emergency and transitional housing through specialist homelessness services

DCJ funds housing for people who are homeless, at risk of becoming homeless and who are in crisis. This can be short-term crisis housing for people who are in immediate crisis or are at great risk of becoming homeless. This may be because of:

• domestic violence
• abuse
• mental health illnesses, or
• other reasons.

Homes NSW also funds other, medium term transitional housing. This housing is for people who have been in crisis and are ready to move on to more stable accommodation.

Crisis and transitional accommodation is supported by Specialist Homelessness Services.

The crisis services provided by community housing organisations are an essential part of the NSW Government’s strategy to reduce homelessness.

General social housing providers

Community housing is good quality, secure, long-term affordable housing for households who are eligible for public housing. This means that anyone applying for community housing should meet the income criteria and have a housing need.

General social housing providers also link clients to specialist support from other community organisations. They do this in response to the needs of their tenants and the local community.

Services for renting privately

For many people who are eligible for social housing, renting privately can be a suitable housing option. Setting up a tenancy particularly for the first time can be difficult. If you wish to rent privately and are eligible, Private Rental Assistance (PRA) products and services can help you get access to a place to live.

Registered community housing providers

Under Community Housing Providers (Adoption of National Law) Act 2012 a community housing provider must be registered with the Registrar of Community Housing to receive assistance. The Registrar is responsible for registering and regulating community housing providers. The Registrar reports directly to the Minister for Water, Housing, Homelessness, Mental Health, Youth and the North Coast.

National Regulatory Code

Registered housing providers must comply with the National Regulatory Code. It focuses on the achievement of outcomes in the following areas:

• tenant and housing services
• housing assets
• community engagement
• governance
• probity (integrity)
• management
• financial viability.

Summary of transfer locations

The table below provides a summary of transfer locations, community housing providers and dates the tenancy management of the properties were transferred to the community housing providers.