Plan affordable rental housing
Find resources for determining where affordable housing is needed, information about the government and non-government organisations involved in planning for, and delivering, affordable housing, including current initiatives and planning legislation which supports affordable housing delivery.
Planning legislation supporting affordable housing
Providing and maintaining affordable housing is one of the objectives of the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.
To assist in meeting this objective, the NSW Government developed the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021 (the Housing SEPP), a planning policy that encourages new, and retains existing, affordable housing.
The Housing SEPP facilitates development of affordable and diverse housing in the right places and for every stage of life. It includes the planning provisions for:
- boarding houses
- build-to-rent housing
- seniors housing
- caravan parks and manufactured home estates
- group homes
- retention of existing affordable rental housing
- secondary dwellings (granny flats)
- social and affordable housing
- short-term rental accommodation
- design quality of residential apartment development.
In addition, the NSW Government has announced new measures to boost affordable and social housing, including a 30% floor space and height bonus for developments with a minimum 15% component of affordable housing.
In 2024, the NSW Government is releasing the Transport Oriented Development Program to encourage sustainable and mixed-use development around 31 priority transport nodes. This will include a minimum 2% affordable housing contribution on all new developments across all these locations.