SITES in Wollongong and Lake Macquarie will be the locations of the first modular homes delivered by the NSW Minns government to address the housing crisis.
Following comprehensive assessment, three sites in Wollongong will host three modular social homes with four sites in Lake Macquarie to host five.
“I welcome not only the use of new and innovative methods of construction that are used the world over to trial them to build more social housing in Wollongong – it is a sensible use of new technology to try and solve a long-term housing waiting list,” said Paul Scully, Planning Minister.
By the government’s numbers it is estimated that modular homes can be delivered 20% faster than traditional methods, while Fleetwood Australia estimated that modular construction can be 50% faster.
“Housing affordability and availability is the single biggest pressure facing the people of New South Wales,” said Chris Minns, premier.
“We are pulling every lever we can to tackle the housing crisis, and today is an important milestone in our work to utilise nontraditional methods of delivering more homes, sooner rather than later.”
The NSW government established a Modular Housing Taskforce last year with industry experts such as PreFab Aus, Shelter NSW, Property Council of Australia, Local Government NSW and people with lived experiences of social housing.
“Today marks another significant milestone in our Modular Housing Taskforce Plan as we announce the locations for the first set of modular social homes,” said Rose Jackson, minister for housing and homelessness.
“These initial sites are a crucial first step towards revolutionising public housing delivery and we anticipate this demonstration project will pave the way for more of these innovative homes to be rolled out in the future.”
The taskforce has worked with the NSW Building Commission to set uniform standards for manufactured homes constructed offsite.
“Amid a severe housing crisis, we need to look at every option we must get a roof over people’s heads sooner. Leveraging modern construction methods will help us provide sustainable, quality housing faster for the people that need it most,” added Jackson.
“We know people don’t have time to wait and while we get on with the job of building 8,400 new public homes announced in the recent budget, we will continue to leverage every opportunity we have.”
Queensland is also investing in modular homes in an attempt to tackle the housing crisis, with the government’s Homes for Queenslanders plan to see 600 modular homes delivered across the state in a partnership with the private sector, as part of the state budget’s record $2.8 billion housing plan.
The Miles government has awarded Perth-founded Fleetwood the $40 contract to design and build the modular homes.
The homes are expected to be delivered by early 2025, with a procurement process already underway.
