Improving how the wider social and economic benefits of social housing are measured and assessed will help demonstrate the service need to support further investment.
There needs to be a robust, nationally consistent and agreed methodology for assessing and quantifying these benefits that fully captures their quadruple- bottom-line value.
Decision-makers would use it to better assess social and affordable housing projects, justify future investment and deliver a better-balanced housing system.
The methodology should consider the unique circumstances of each location, such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples living in remote communities. Accessing this information would rely on high-quality, consistent, standardised and real-time data being collected across Australia's states and territories.
The data would cover the location, availability and quality of existing social housing stock and identify where new stock may be required based on changes in demographic demands.
The cost-benefit analysis would be substantially more comprehensive if there was also evidence around:
• building standards and dwelling design to better inform the quality and form of housing
• environmental cost offsets
• connectivity to other social facilities
• the provision of open spaces
• disposable income benefits from reduced rents (especially in affordable rental housing)
• tenant outcomes regarding wellbeing and economic participation
• the impact on social Justice and community cohesion.