MEMBER for Hawkesbury Dominic Perrottet is a leading figure as the state government looks to open a new kind of rental market in New South Wales, with hopes it will increasing housing supply.
The state government is looking at bringing ‘build to rent’ housing to NSW.
Build to rent housing is centred around long-term rental leases, usually in large complexes managed by a company, as opposed to the short-term leases most Australians who rent are accustomed to.
Build to rent housing complexes often have greater amenities than ones with short-term leases, because they are more like a resident’s home, not merely a place they rent from a landlord.
Mr Perrottet was in the United States recently, where he met with the CEO of Greystar, a company which creates build-to-rent housing globally.
Build-to-rent is likely a novel term to many Australians, however, particularly in Europe, it is a much more common option, where renters are given the security of a long-term lease.
Over the past few years, the state government, as well as the federal government, have been working on measures to ease the housing market, amid constant fears that it was in a bubble.
Several measures have been taken, including giving stamp duty tax breaks to first home buyers and raising taxes on foreign investors.
However, Mr Perrottet is of the opinion that build to rent could be a popular option among millennials.
“The build-to-rent sector is well established abroad and there is no reason why with the right policy settings it could not be a possibility here in NSW also,” he told the Gazette.
“Millennials increasingly are prepared to rent for longer than their parents did so build to rent is a potential new housing option with greater amenities and security of tenure.”
In August last year, the state government created an industry working group, to examine how build to rent could be implemented in NSW.
“Housing is a big focus for the NSW Government and it is important that we seek ways to diversify the options available to the people of NSW,” Mr Perrottet said.