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The Albanese government has launched the second round of the Housing Australia Future Fund (HAFF), which is now open for applications.
National housing agency Housing Australia is now accepting applications for the second round of funding from its Future Fund – a $10 billion investment fund established by the federal government to support and increase social and affordable housing.
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Building on the first round from earlier this year, the second round is exclusively open to state and territory government submissions and has allocated funding for up to 5,000 new social homes (part of the government’s proposed pipeline of 55,000 social and affordable homes), which the government said was a “critical step toward easing the housing crisis”.
The move is expected to unlock up to $3 billion in new investment in social housing across Australia, creating thousands of construction jobs, the Albanese government said.
As part of the funding round, the government is seeking to partner with states and territories that can contribute on top of the HAFF funding to deliver social housing, for example, by offering up new land.
States and territories will also be strongly encouraged to partner with community housing providers and will be required to show that the projects add to new social housing stock, the government said.
Funding will be offered across states and territories on a ‘use it or lose it’ basis, according to the Minister for Housing and Homelessness, Clare O’Neil MP.
Applications opened this week (beginning 16 December 2024) for states and territories to submit projects. The round will close on 31 January with decisions to be made shortly after.
“This a great new partnership with states and territories that is going to fast‑track 5,000 new social homes, because the way out of this housing crisis is to build, build, build,” said O’Neil.
“This partnership is about building thousands of homes quickly, and it’s one part of Labor’s ambitious plan to build more houses right across Australia, making housing more abundant and affordable.”
Housing Australia CEO Scott Langford said that the body was “pleased to be collaborating with States and Territories to rapidly address the critical need for social housing for Funding Round Two”.
“We are strongly encouraging models from States and Territories that enable partnering with CHPs. We look forward to working with the broader market in the new year to develop further approaches for future rounds to deliver more homes as soon as possible,” Langford said.
Move welcomed by housing industry
News of the second round of HAFF was welcomed by industry bodies.
The Housing Industry Association’s (HIA) managing director, Jocelyn Martin, said it marked an “important acknowledgement that the urgent delivery of social housing is the responsibility of the government” and would support a portion of the 1.2 million homes that need to be delivered for housing to be affordable and well-located for all Australians.
“If this drive to find well-located land and to improve approval processes could be translated to the rest of the market, we would be better placed to address the housing shortage across the board,” she said.
“Dwelling commencements remain approximately 20 per cent below the decade average and this year will fall well short of the 240,000 we need to build per year over the next five years to reduce Australia’s housing supply challenges.
“Red tape, slow approval systems, availability of land and delivery of housing infrastructure add cost and slow down the ability to bring new homes to market.”
Similarly, PowerHousing Australia reacted warmly to the opening of the HAFF second round.
PowerHousing Australia’s director of policy & strategy, Alex Raphael, said: “Dedicated funding for social housing is a crucial piece of the housing jigsaw in Australia.
“Community housing providers are ready to collaborate with state and territories to get more Australians in homes that are safe and affordable. By working together, we can lay the foundation for a future where social and affordable housing represents one in 10 of all homes in Australia.”
The government said it plans to begin consultations for HAFF round three early next year with applications to open mid-2025.
It has also asked Housing Australia to set up a working group with community housing organisations to facilitate engagement with the sector.
[Related: First round of HAFF funding set to deliver over 13k homes]
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