As the nationwide housing crisis continues to impact the Lithgow region, new homes continue to be built to ease the pressure.
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12 new units have been completed by Housing plus to accomodate Lithgow residents in need of affordable homes.
CEO of Housing Plus, Justin Cantelo said that despite assisting some people, more needs to be done to address the crisis.
"We're experiencing a housing crisis in Australia, and Lithgow is no different," Mr Cantelo said.
"Unfortunately this is not enough. It helps, because there's 12 people that have already moved in here, but we need to absolutely do more."
Mr Cantelo said the already limited rental property availability offers little to no options of affordable housing.
"Right now there's 23 rental properties on the market and only two of those are under $300, which based on our assessments meets the affordable criteria depending on the individual," he said.
According to Mr Cantelo, the vacancy rate in Lithgow is presently an extremely low 1.1 per cent- and there are 96 people on the social housing pathways register.
"The vacancy rate shows the shortage of rental properties for people here in Lithgow," he said.
"There is currently more than 96 people on the register. So there's a huge demand for these types of developments."
Mr Cantelo said Housing plus are hoping to continue building homes in the region under $11 billion federal government Housing Australia Future Fund.
"We've already a first submission in as part of round one," he said.
"We'll be looking to continue our delivery of social and affordable housing across regional NSW, and Lithgow is part of that."
General Manager of Lithgow City Council, Craig Butler said the Council want to actively participate in addressing the housing crisis through their acquisition of land near Lithgow Hospital.
"Housing is the great tragedy of our times. It's an absolute injustice, and I hope we haven't seen the best of it," Mr Butler said.
"It [the land] will have 40 odd allotments. We want to make a difference. We want to put as many as 80 dwellings on there."
According to Mr Butler, the Council will be reaching out to community housing providers to see if they would like to carry the development forward.
"We're interested in doing innovative housing and seeing the development delivered in a short period of time for social good," he said.
Reidun Berntsen
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
