Manage affordable rental housing

Managing affordable housing involves the standard property and tenancy management requirements of managing any rental housing. However, it also involves additional responsibilities around assessing eligibility, setting rent, letting properties to eligible households and meeting the requirements of the relevant affordable housing program.

In general, managing affordable housing involves:

• determining household eligibility for affordable housing properties
• establishing and implementing affordable housing rent policy
• finding eligible tenants, managing applications and assessments and allocating properties
• managing tenancies, including collecting rent and maintaining properties
• reviewing eligibility and managing a tenant’s exit if they are no longer eligible to stay in the property.

If you are managing affordable housing properties which were acquired or developed using government funds or benefits or through the Housing SEPP, you will need to meet the requirements associated with that funding, benefit or legislation. These requirements will be outlined in funding contracts and/or in government endorsed guidelines such as the NSW Affordable Housing Ministerial Guidelines PDF, 14062.98 KB and include criteria such as which households are eligible, how rents should be set and what information needs to be provided to the funding body.

Requirements may differ from program to program according to contractual arrangements, and your responsibilities will vary depending on whether you own the property or are managing it on behalf of, or in partnership with, another organisation.

All tenancy managers of affordable housing in NSW must comply with the Residential Tenancies Act 2010.

Properties developed with NSW Government assistance or through planning incentives outlined in the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021 (Housing SEPP)^[1] must be managed by a registered community housing provider and in accordance with the NSW Affordable Housing Ministerial Guidelines PDF, 14062.98 KB.

Generally, this will include properties that have been developed from:

• leveraged finance from vested assets
• capital grants for social and affordable housing
• land and capital grants for affordable housing delivered through planning agreements
• affordable housing programs such as the Affordable Housing Innovations Fund/Community Housing Innovation Fund, Communities Plus and the Social and Affordable Housing Fund; and
• NRAS A - where the NSW Government has provided an upfront grant or contribution in kind. Note that properties receiving NRAS funding must also comply with Commonwealth NRAS Policy Guidelines, which will take precedence where there is any difference between the requirements of the two.
• other planning incentives such as contribution schemes, density bonuses etc.

The guidelines include overarching principles for delivering affordable housing in NSW, as well as policy requirements on income limits for eligibility (updated annually) and rent setting.

Rent may be set in one of two ways:

• At least 20% below market rent for an NRAS eligible household (NRAS dwellings must use this rent setting approach)
• 25 - 30% of household income as rent for very low, low or moderate income households.

New generation boarding houses developed under the Housing SEPP need to be managed by a community housing provider as affordable housing in perpetuity.

¹ Affordable rental housing which has been approved using planning incentives under the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021 must be rented as affordable housing to very low, low or moderate households for at least 15 years and must be managed by a registered community housing provider.

The National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) is a Commonwealth Government initiative delivered in partnership with the NSW Government to support the delivery of new affordable rental housing supply.

NRAS provides incentives through the Commonwealth and State Governments for up to 10 years to develop affordable housing, on the condition that rent is discounted by at least 20 percent below the market rate and targeted to eligible low to moderate income families.

Affordable housing properties receiving NRAS incentives are managed according to the National Rental Affordability Scheme Regulations 2020 developed by the Commonwealth Government.  For more information about NRAS, go to the Department of Social Services website

Some NRAS properties were developed by community housing providers with upfront capital funding from the NSW Government, under a scheme called NRAS A.

Properties receiving NRAS A funding must comply with both the Commonwealth NRAS Regulations and the NSW Affordable Housing Ministerial Guidelines PDF, 14062.98 KB. Where Commonwealth NRAS Regulations differ from these Guidelines, for example in maximum income limits, the Commonwealth NRAS Regulations prevail to the extent of the difference.