More North-West land for affordable home ownership

Guy Barnett,Minister for State Development, Construction and Housing

The Tasmanian Government is increasing social and affordable housing and releasing more land for residential development.

Three land release projects now underway that will deliver a total of 161 lots for home ownership. Of these, 47 lots will be for sale at Kentish Drive, Shorewell Park, 32 lots at 28 Bowick Street, Wynyard, and 28 lots at Hales Street, Wynyard.

North-West Coasters eligible for affordable home ownership assistance will get the first chance to buy land from the release at two of these subdivisions from today, July 1.

28 lots have now become available for purchase, with 23 lots available at the Kentish Drive, Shorewell Park, and five lots available at Bowick Street, Wynyard.

All of these lots will be prioritised for affordable housing sales for the next 30 days. If not sold during that time, they will become available on the open market.

Many North-West Coasters are struggling with the rising cost of living and are looking to social and affordable housing for assistance.

Affordable home ownership is a real option for many Tasmanians on the social housing register who have indicated their primary preference is to live on the North-West Coast.

Help with home ownership is available with the Tasmanian Government’s shared equity program MyHome, which provides assistance to Tasmanians on low to moderate incomes. It works by reducing the cost of buying a house, as well as reducing the monthly cost of owning it. Under MyHome, eligible buyers can purchase a home with a deposit as low as just two per cent.

MyHome has generous eligibility so that we can support as many people as possible in an affordable way to reach their home ownership goals. Single people with a gross income of up to $87,509 (or $1,683 per week) or a couple with a gross income of up to $100,636 (or $1,935 per week) are eligible to apply. Higher income limits apply to households with children.

The Tasmanian Government is focused on issues Tasmanians really care about and we are delivering.

Our 10-year, $1.5 billion housing package – the single largest housing investment in the State’s history – will build on existing initiatives and take further action to tackle affordable housing and homelessness issues, consolidating housing as one of the highest priorities of the Government.

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