❓ A WA parliamentary question addresses public housing shortages and overcrowding in Kununurra, seeking data on housing availability, waiting lists, and the impact on tenants' wellbeing, while also inquiring about potential funding solutions.
AnsweredQoN 2826Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to a constituent enquiry regarding public housing in Kununurra, and I ask: (a) how many publicly owned houses are there in Kununurra, and how many vacancies; (b) how many people are there on the waiting list for public housing in Kununurra, and what is the average period that people must wait before they are housed; (c) how many people on the waiting list are single, married, living with one, two, three, four or more children, sharing with relatives, and so on; (d) how many Homeswest houses are considered to be overcrowded, and by how many people, and what does Homeswest do to monitor the situation; (e) what effect do the long waiting periods and overcrowding have on the physical and mental wellbeing of prospective tenants; (f) what steps will the Minister take to address the shortage of housing in Kununurra in the short and long term; and (g) will Royalties for Regions funding be made available to alleviate the situation and, if not, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
21 April 2015
Responded by
Minister for Housing
Response time
42 days
The Department of Housing advises:
(a) 300, of which 29 are vacant.
(b) 220 applications are on the public housing waiting list. The average waiting time is not currently recorded at suburb level. However, the average waiting time for the East Kimberley region that includes Kununurra is 141 weeks for the 12 months up to and including January 2015.
(c) The Department is unable to determine how many applicants are sharing with relatives, and information collected on household structure is self-reported.
The breakdown by household structure for applicants in Kununurra is:
Couple: nine; couple with one child: 12; couple with two children: four; couple with three children: one; couple with four children: two; senior couple: two; senior single: 14; single: 106; single with one child: 15; single with two children: eight; single with three children: four; single with four children: two; single with five children: three.
There are an additional 38 applications for 'Family Groups', which generally refers to applicants living with adult-aged children.
(d) This information is not currently recorded so the Department is unable to answer this question.
(e) Other than for the purposes of assessing eligibility and housing requirements, the Department does not collect personal information from applicants for public housing.
(f) The Department has delivered 84 new homes in Kununurra since 2011-12, which have been used for social housing, government employee and key worker housing, and home ownership opportunities. An additional eight homes are under construction for social housing and a further 10 will commence in 2015-16. LandCorp also has land for sale in its Coolibah and Lakeside Park estates in the town.
The Department's longer term plans to deliver new housing in Kununurra will be considered as part of its wider development program, which gives consideration to housing needs across the State.
(g) Royalties for Regions provides investment for regionally-beneficial projects through State Government agencies and the State's nine Regional Development Commissions. The program is administered by the Department for Regional Development and projects are assessed against the relevant regional development strategy and the Royalties for Regions investment priorities.
(a) 300, of which 29 are vacant.
(b) 220 applications are on the public housing waiting list. The average waiting time is not currently recorded at suburb level. However, the average waiting time for the East Kimberley region that includes Kununurra is 141 weeks for the 12 months up to and including January 2015.
(c) The Department is unable to determine how many applicants are sharing with relatives, and information collected on household structure is self-reported.
The breakdown by household structure for applicants in Kununurra is:
Couple: nine; couple with one child: 12; couple with two children: four; couple with three children: one; couple with four children: two; senior couple: two; senior single: 14; single: 106; single with one child: 15; single with two children: eight; single with three children: four; single with four children: two; single with five children: three.
There are an additional 38 applications for 'Family Groups', which generally refers to applicants living with adult-aged children.
(d) This information is not currently recorded so the Department is unable to answer this question.
(e) Other than for the purposes of assessing eligibility and housing requirements, the Department does not collect personal information from applicants for public housing.
(f) The Department has delivered 84 new homes in Kununurra since 2011-12, which have been used for social housing, government employee and key worker housing, and home ownership opportunities. An additional eight homes are under construction for social housing and a further 10 will commence in 2015-16. LandCorp also has land for sale in its Coolibah and Lakeside Park estates in the town.
The Department's longer term plans to deliver new housing in Kununurra will be considered as part of its wider development program, which gives consideration to housing needs across the State.
(g) Royalties for Regions provides investment for regionally-beneficial projects through State Government agencies and the State's nine Regional Development Commissions. The program is administered by the Department for Regional Development and projects are assessed against the relevant regional development strategy and the Royalties for Regions investment priorities.
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