- Housing Options available in office now and online in 2022
- Will replace outdated registration system
- Provides greater advice and support to applicants
The Western Australian government has announced a new registration system will be launched in an effort to streamline the process of applying for public housing.
The Department of Communities’ new system, Housing Options, is available in any Communities’ office but won’t be online until 2022.
Housing Options is expected to make the process of obtaining public housing easier by integrating several applications into one.
John Carey, Minister for Housing, described Housing Options as a “one-stop assessment that provides people with personalised advice in relation to the most suitable housing assistance for their circumstances.”
Outdated and inefficient
With the previous system, applicants were subject to numerous application processes as a new form had to be filled out for each service they wished to apply for resulting in providing the same information several times.
Applicants were also required to nominate the services or support they felt they needed, a process that has been discarded in the new system.
“Until now, people have had to self-select a housing assistance option based on their knowledge of what is available and then fill out a form for each product or service providing the same information on multiple occasions.”
John Carey, Housing Minister
New and improved
With Housing Options, it will not be necessary for applicants to know what services are available to them and people will instead be met with advice and support when assessing their options.
“People will be provided with more information about housing assistance available so they can make informed decisions about what options and solutions best suit their needs,” Mr Carey said.
Housing Options will ask applicants for a comprehensive snapshot of their current circumstances, which will then be assessed to pair people with suitable housing support services.
“Housing Options will determine a person’s housing needs, with consideration to their income, assets, household structure, desired location, disability or medical condition, risks to safety and well-being as well as barriers to alternative housing,” Mr Carey added.
Housing support services that may be provided include public housing, community housing, bond assistance loans, private rental Aboriginal assistance loans and Keystart home loans.
The new registration system is being rolled out in hopes it will help break down barriers to accessing housing support.
“People seeking housing support are generally doing it pretty tough and I strongly support any measures that will make their lives easier.”
John Carey, Housing Minister
Anyone wishing to apply for housing support can now complete a Housing Options assessment at any Communities’ housing office, and expect the system to be rolled out online next year.
