"What we've got is a major shortage of affordable housing, so we're estimating that we need 100,000 homes," NSW Federation of Housing Associations chief executive Wendy Hayhurst told news.com.au. What Hayhurst is proposing is that the community housing sector be transformed into a third tier of the Australian housing market - between private developers and public housing - like the one that operates in the UK. Just like ordinary bonds, they provide a low-risk investment option that's backed by a government guarantee, while acting as a stimulus to the building of affordable housing. Call for supportHayhurst called on the Federal Government to support the creation of a new, independent finance body to help boost the affordable housing sector. But community housing not-for-profits had the opposite imperative, he said, and were devoted to the incremental growth of housing stock.

Source: New Zealand Herald July 31, 2016 01:52 UTC