❓ WA Parliamentary Question on Notice regarding the social housing waitlist, revealing the number of applicants and average wait time as of March 2026. The answer also references a previous question for historical data.
AnsweredQoN 1485Legislative Council
Asked
14 April 2026
Member
Portfolio
Planning and Lands; Housing and Works; Health Infrastructure
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the social housing waitlist, and I ask:(a) what is the current number of applicants;(b) how has this number changed each year since 2017; and(c) what is the current average wait time?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
14 May 2026
Responded by
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Planning and Lands; Housing and Works; Health Infrastructure
Response time
6 days
(a) As at 31 March 2026, there were 23,395 applications.
(b) Please refer to the answer provided in Legislative Assembly Question on Notice 949.
(c) As at 31 March 2026 the average wait time for the Public Housing wait list was 171 weeks.
This figure includes outlier applicants who are currently adequately housed and may have declined multiple properties but remain eligible for public housing. Various factors may contribute to longer wait times for applicants such as where applicants require specific housing features, applicants who spend periods incarcerated, and changes in preference zone, family composition or housing need. Additional considerations include medical needs, proximity to support networks, and cultural sensitivities.
(b) Please refer to the answer provided in Legislative Assembly Question on Notice 949.
(c) As at 31 March 2026 the average wait time for the Public Housing wait list was 171 weeks.
This figure includes outlier applicants who are currently adequately housed and may have declined multiple properties but remain eligible for public housing. Various factors may contribute to longer wait times for applicants such as where applicants require specific housing features, applicants who spend periods incarcerated, and changes in preference zone, family composition or housing need. Additional considerations include medical needs, proximity to support networks, and cultural sensitivities.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.