Other Housing research
Lens 4: Urban Housing, Working Package 1: Report on the state of play of housing-related datasets, research tools and visualisations in Australia – Second Report, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (2014), 40 pages
This research consultancy report for the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) outlines (i) the current processes or tools whereby housing researchers transform data into evidence, and (ii) the current visualisation tools used by housing researchers.
Lens 4: Urban Housing, Working Package 1: Report on the state of play of housing related data and e-Research tools in Australia: Preliminary report, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (2013), 70 pages
This research consultancy report for the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) (i) outlines a housing data framework, and (ii) documents the housing datasets (and their characteristics) that currently being used by or potentially available to housing researchers in Australia.
Forecasting Social Housing Demand – Development of Indicators, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with L Ralston & T Burke) (2013)
A consultancy report for the Policy and Strategy Group, Victorian Department of Human Services
Short project on prospective intergenerational housing opportunities for the township of Hurstbridge, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (2012)
A consultancy research report for the Shire of Nillumbik
Housing Needs and Opportunities in Mount Alexander Shire: Discussion Paper, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (2012)
A consultancy research report for the Shire of Mount Alexander analyzing the housing needs in the Shire and outlining the opportunities for responding to those needs.
National Survey of Providers of Independent Living Units (ILUs) for people with relatively low incomes and low assets: Final Report, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with A Sharam) (2011), 37 pages
A consultancy research report for the Commonwealth Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. This report outlines the key findings of the 2011 National Survey of providers of independent living units (ILUs) and the status of the national ILU database. It also compares these findings with those from the 2002 National Survey.
Housing Needs Website: Data Framework Report, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with T Burke, C Neske & L Ralston) (2007), 102 pages
A consultancy research report for the Inner Region Affordable Housing Initiative outlining housing affordability indicators and, the available housing data by sources and characteristics relevant to local governments in Victoria.
Affordable Housing Discussion Paper: City of Yarra, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with T Burke & C Neske) (2006)
A consultancy research report for the City of Yarra which outlines the affordable housing issues for the City.
Bass Coast Shire Local Housing Picture, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with B Kliger, T Burke, L Ralston & C Neske) (2005), 115 pages
Bass Coast Shire Affordable Housing Strategy, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with B Kliger, T Burke, L Ralston & C Neske) (2005)
A consultancy research report for the Shire of Bass Coast which proposes a strategy for making affordable housing available to residents in the Shire.
Shire of Yarra Ranges Housing Strategy Issues Paper, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with B Kliger, M Nankervis, T Burke, L Ralston & C Neske) (2005), 204 pages
A consultancy research report for the Shire of Yarra Ranges which outlines the issues that a local housing strategy must address.
Affordable housing for young people employed in the City of Melbourne, Volume I: Summary report and Volume II: Technical Report, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with A Esposto & C Neske) (2005), Volume I – 17 pages & Volume II -108 pages
A consultancy research report for the City of Melbourne which (i) profiles young workers in the Melbourne Inner (CBD) and Southbank- Docklands Statistical Local Areas (ii) analyses housing affordability for young workers according to major occupational groups and, compares the cost of renting in the City of Melbourne with the total cost of renting and travelling to work from suburban Melbourne, and (iii) reports on a search for current models of housing for young inner city workers that may be of interest to Melbourne City Council.
Frankston City Council Social Housing Policy: Part I: Issues Paper and Part II: Action Plan, Swinburne Institute for Social Research (with B Kliger) (2003)
A consultancy research report for Frankston City Council
Young adults with disabilities: planning for their future housing and support (draft), Ecumenical Housing (with G McVicar, A O’Brien & A Reynolds) (2002), 28 pages
Families of children with intellectual disabilities usually play a major role in the day-to-day care and support of their children. Many parents of the current generation of young adults with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities want to ensure timely planning for the future transition of their children to more independent living with appropriate levels of support and supervision. This draft report sets out a proposed structure through which families can formally and collectively manage the arrangement of appropriate housing and support for their children.
Funding and Administrative Framework for Community Housing: Discussion Paper – Partnership, Risks and Contracts within Community Housing in Victoria, Ecumenical Housing (2002), 25 pages
In Victoria, community managed housing programs have been implemented with a range of different funding, administrative and reporting arrangements. Streamlined program arrangements are required to release unnecessary effort from complex administration, particularly for multi-program provider agencies, and channel this effort into improved service delivery and outcomes for tenants. This Discussion paper raises issues regarding the partnership between government and community housing organisations and the risks faced by parties to a new contract. It proposes a broad framework for the future contractual relationship.
Creating better futures for high-rise public housing residents in Melbourne, Ecumenical Housing, Melbourne, (with A Reynolds) (2001), 149 pages
High-rise public housing is a distinctive form of public housing in Victoria. In the inner city where house prices and rents have continued to rise, high-rise public housing plays a key role in providing affordable rental housing for low income households. However, the availability of this affordable housing stock does not equate with the availability of safe, secure and appropriate housing for a number of tenants. There are varied views about what should happen to high-rise public housing. Government and the community sector are continually developing initiatives to tackle specific issues. However, while these are important for ameliorating very evident and significant problems, in many ways they represent different ways of patching holes in a ship that has no real direction or destination. The need to develop a clear strategic vision and role for the future of the high-rise towers is urgent. In developing this vision, Ecumenical Housing considers it essential that the wide diversity of views and insights into the issues currently confronting this form of housing are taken into account, as well as the diverse views about the possibilities for regeneration and future management of the towers.
Lionswood Village: Capital funding for proposed building works, Ecumenical Housing (2001)
A research consultancy for Lionswood Village in Ringwood
Accommodation Options for People with a Disability Who Are Ageing – Final Draft Report, Ecumenical Housing, Melbourne, (with A Reynolds, C Bigby & T Liston) (1999), 107 pages
People with a disability who are ageing vary enormously in their capacities, abilities and support needs. They each have a personal history, different circumstances and their disabilities affect different aspects of their capacities and thus of their lives. This diversity presents considerable challenges for developing a range of appropriate support programs and service models. In addition to varying needs, groups differ considerably in their expectations of government and their ability to speak for themselves and advocate their needs to government and the broader community.
This report documents existing and potential housing and support models, particularly from the aged care sector, and outlines the potential suitability/feasibility of these models for people with a disability who are ageing.
Private Funding Models for Church Community Housing, Ecumenical Housing, Melbourne (1999)
At this time, the Commonwealth Government and the National Community Housing Forum were investigating strategies for attracting large scale institutional investment in community housing. This report, however, is the result of project focusing on methods of attracting small scale investment in community housing. In particular, it aimed to attract social investors, that is, investors who not only wish to invest in a socially beneficial project (ethical investors) but are also prepared to accept a lower than market rate of return on a risk adjusted basis.
This report begins by exploring the parameters for funding models. It then goes on to explore two different models:
- A Partial Debt Finance model which involves a church organisation contributing some assets (land/cash) to a community housing project (without seeking a dividend for their investment) and borrowing the balance of the capital requirements for the project from a private investor
- An Equity Investment/Headleasing model which involves a church community housing manager undertaking a small unit development and subsequently negotiating a “sale and leaseback” arrangement with a social investor (church members or adherents).
A Financing Kit accompanied this report (see below).
Financing Kit for Private Funding Models for Church Community Housing, Ecumenical Housing, Melbourne (1999)
Financing Kit – Explanatory Paper
Financing Kit – Excel files in Zip file
This Financing Kit is a resource for community organisations exploring the viability of private investment in community housing. It consists of three EXCEL files and an explanatory paper. The kit is based on the two financing models outlined in the report, Private Funding Models for Church Community Housing (see above). The explanatory paper explains in detail the data required to run the models, how the models work, the type of results that can be obtained from running the models and the limitations of these results. The kit also includes extensive information on Centrelink payments. This information enables users of the kit to ascertain the income levels of tenants who will be able to afford the housing provided by the model, based on a benchmark rent.
Towards A Holistic Response To People With Housing And Support Needs: A report to the Office of Housing on integrating housing assistance and support services for people with disabilities, Victorian Council of Social Services, Melbourne, (with R Nichols) (1997)
The integration of housing assistance and support services is a major challenge, one which requires government and agencies to move beyond the one-dimensional approach of each service towards a more holistic view of responding to the needs of consumers.
This report (i) reviews some Australian and overseas literature on linkages between housing assistance and support services, (ii) provides some background on the definition of housing assistance and support services, profiles possible services users, and describes the current service systems in Victoria, the current pathways, linkages and barriers, and (iii) proposes strategies in 5 areas: developing consumer outcome measures; delivering housing and support services, developing clear and accessible pathways and linkages, integrating allocation systems and developing supportive management policies and practices.
Rental assistance or rental rebates?, National Housing Action, 13:1, pp. 31-44 (1997)
This article, addresses debates in the mid-1990s about whether to provide rental assistance or rental rebates to tenants. It examines the characteristics of each and assesses them in terms of their effectiveness, equity and capacity to address poverty traps.
Performance monitoring and housing assistance in Victoria, Victorian Council of Social Service (VCOSS), Melbourne (1996)
This report explores (i) the notion of performance monitoring – its definition and purpose, how it relates to other management tools, the different types of performance indicators, its key characteristics and limitations, (ii) performance indicators in the context of the National Housing Reform agenda and the Commonwealth-State Housing Agreement, (iii) the development and application of performance indicators for the CSHA, (iv) the performance indicators for public housing, private rental assistance and community housing, and (v) issues for the implementation of the national performance indicator framework in Victoria.
Social Housing: Building the future, VCOSS Social Housing Paper No.2, Victorian Council of Social Service (VCOSS), Melbourne (1993)
Social Housing: A future direction for housing, VCOSS Social Housing Paper No.1, Victorian Council of Social Service (VCOSS), Melbourne (1992)
In the early 1990s, social housing was a topic of vigorous debate in the community housing sector. Many people were confused, wondering what this new sort of housing was. Social housing: a future direction for housing discusses the major issues of concern about social housing as it marks a shift in perspective on housing away from sole concern with ownership to a concern with outcomes, or the achievement of particular social objectives and obligations. What is critical is not so much who owns housing stock, but whether the ways in which housing is owned, financed and managed provide social housing agencies with sufficient control of the housing to ensure the achievement of these social objectives and obligations. The paper also places social housing in an historical context and, looks forward by placing it in the context of a range of future scenarios for housing.
Since their inception in the mid-1980s, Common Equity Rental Co-operatives (CERCs) in Victoria had charged a rent based upon the zone in which dwellings were located. By 1990, the inadequacies of this system of rent setting became apparent. This discussion paper reviews a range of issues related to developing a rental system for the CERC Program and proposes a particular framework for a CERC rental system that (i) promotes co-operative principles, (ii) promotes the independence, autonomy, control, skills and responsibilities of CERCs, (iii) conforms with the principles, objectives and nature of the CERC Program, in particular providing tenants with control over the management of their housing, (iv) provides financial incentives to CERCs to lower the capital costs of acquiring dwellings and to adopt some cost saving measures in regard to the ongoing costs of managing, financing and maintaining dwellings, (v) ensures the short and long-term viability of CERCs, and (vi) ensures that rentals are distributed equitably.