The housing crisis in NSW is no joke (we're all feeling it), so in an effort to deliver more affordable homes, more quickly, the NSW Government has announced the first trial sites for modular homes – with seven sites across NSW set to welcome residents to high-spec, super-compact homes over the next 12 months. Depending on the results of the trial, these architecturally-designed small scale homes could be the future of social housing in NSW. This comes off the back of their announcement last month about the biggest investment in public housing in the state’s history.
Thanks to a $10-million investment, three sites in Wollongong and four sites in Lake Macquarie will each become home to five modular social homes, set to be ready for residents by early 2025.
If you’re wondering what a modular home is, it’s pretty much what it says on the tin: a home built from pre-made sections which are fitted together to form a modular building, which can be transported and installed onto a site in one fell swoop. This method of construction makes the homes super-efficient and affordable to build, and these easy-to-build, energy-efficient homes could become a key pillar of the government’s new approach to tackling the housing crisis, pending how well these first trial sites go.
"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,” says Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson.
Modular homes can be delivered 20 per cent faster than traditional building methods, with delivery predicted to get more efficient as more of these compact easy-build homes are built across the state. But although they’re theoretically easier to build, the construction of modular homes in NSW won’t come without its challenges – and the scale of this new project is likely to come up against some barriers. In the hope of safeguarding the project, the government has established a Modular Housing Taskforce, a group of industry experts who are collaborating with NSW Building Commission to set standards and optimise the construction of modular homes across these initial trial sites.
“Modular and modern methods of construction are used to produce award-winning architecturally designed homes in a timely and efficient manner, so it makes sense to trial this approach to construction as part of the Minns Government’s commitment to build more social housing,” says Member for Wollongong Paul Scully.
You can learn more about this new approach to affordable housing over here.
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