I agree that we are sitting on a situation which will change the fabric of Australian society and I am thinking about what needs to be done to get us back on track. Our only point of difference is whether we entrust governments to deliver this or not.
Centralised supply of govt housing has led to some atrocious social environments in the past.
Rather than build the high-rise apartment blocks like they did in the 1960's, some time ago the housing commission started renting premises in all sorts of areas around Melbourne (I am not sure if it happens elsewhere) from the open market and then re-renting those buildings to people-in-need on a subsidised basis. The advantages of this have been that kids from financially-struggling families grow up in suburbs where they can have an average upbringing rather than a segregated upbringing. The problem has been finding places that suit the housing commission's needs.
I have read that the housing commission is contemplating going a step further and doing what the Defence Housing Authority is doing. The DHA commission the building of townhouses, apartments, houses etc and then sell those premises to general investors on the agreement that the house will be rented to the DHA for a period of 9 - 12 years.
The investor then deals with the DHA who are more adept at negotiating a fair rent every year than an individual and they also perform all maintenance tasks which allows maintenance costs to be controlled and kept fair. The DHA then place military staff in the houses and charge them a subsidised rent. At the end of the agreed period the DHA vacate and the house becomes just like any other available for rent to the general market.
If the housing commission take this idea up, they will be able to control the quailty of the new buildings, as they are the developers, and they will be able to meet demand without waiting for the private sector to create the housing where they (the housing commission) actually want it to be. I like the idea because it leads to a more diverse range of choices for people in need and avoids the ghettos created in the past.
It remains to be seen whether all this will happen and indeed whether it would be successful but it is another possibility which seeks to combine government housing with private sector investment.
