Granny flats, dongas could alleviate housing shortages, expert says

And while the country is no stranger to bushfires, the most recent event that occurred between September 2019 to March 2020 has done unprecedented damage in recent history. 

Data showed that the bushfire incident destroyed 2,448 homes and damaged 1,013 houses, with the majority of property losses occurring in southern NSW. 

Meanwhile, the flooding incident that devastated the east coast, particularly NSW and Queensland, in March 2022 has submerged tens of thousands of properties across affected areas and left a significant portion uninhabitable or needing repairs.

Mr Raine said that presently, there are areas that are recording dangerously low vacancy rates and are forcing people to take extreme measures in order to have a roof over their heads. 

“Lack of housing is forcing people to live out of cars while local charitable organisations scramble to provide emergency housing,” Mr Raine said.

To underline how dire the current shortage is, he highlighted that even areas that are far from central business districts have scarce rental listings. 

For example, he noted that the town of Mossman, which is located far north of Queensland, currently has a rental vacancy rate below 0.6 per cent. 

Mr Raine highlighted that the scenario does not get better in Central Queensland. “Families in Rockhampton are being forced to live in tents while they wait for accommodation,” he stated. 

In July, Domain’s data showed that the national vacancy rate has fallen to its lowest point on record at 0.9 per cent, after four consecutive months of holding steady at 1 per cent. 

The report also noted that the shortage in supply and availability of vacant rentals drove up asking rents and further escalated competition between tenants. 

Mr Raine warned that the housing shortage is a crisis that doesn’t “have a massive window to fix”.

He urged the government to step up to tackle the problem. “These people need help now and councils need to look at some more immediate short-term fixes such as allowing homeowners to add granny flats to their properties,” he said.

To support this measure, Mr Raine is calling on governments to consider offering subsidies to encourage home owners to add granny flats.

“More grant flats will help address some of the housing crisis, while homeowners who add a granny flat won’t harm the value of their properties either,” he explained. 

Mr Raine also suggested that dongas or transportable buildings — which are often used on remote work sites or as tourist accommodation — could be used to provide safer and more secure emergency housing.