- Over 150 social houses will be built in Ballarat
- The city is Australia's third largest that is inland
- Rental listings have generally been on the decline since 2016
As part of the Victorian Government’s $5.3 billion Big Housing Build, over 150 social houses will be built in Ballarat – the third-largest inland city in Australia after Canberra and Toowoomba.
The Ballarat project, which is due to start next year, includes replacing 66 of the social housing homes within the Delacombe estate.
In the coming weeks, extensive community consultation is due to commence, which includes a master plan for the project.
Along with the new housing, improvements in streets, public spaces and improved pedestrian and vehicle connectivity is set to transform the neighbourhood.
Delacombe adds to the Ascot Vale, Ashburton, Flemington, Hawthorn, Heidelberg West and North Richmond housing projects that are currently underway.
Richard Wynne, the Minister for Housing, said the Ballarat project will create 100 direct and 350 indirect local jobs.
“Our investment in housing is ensuring more Victorians have security and stability – whether that’s a roof over your head or a job building one,” he said.
“We’re creating local jobs, while also building homes that will transform the lives of community members, delivering a stronger and more resilient Ballarat,” added the local Member for Wendouree, Juliana Addison.
The Ballarat project is set to cost $80 million.
Ballarat in high demand
The Victorian government’s announcement comes as demand remains high for Ballarat.
As shown in the above data from SQM Research, the number of weekly rental listings in Ballarat has been declining since 2016, although this recovered slightly during the middle of last year.
Additionally, the residential vacancy rate has declined significantly since 2016. After troughing in 2018, the rate increased, but since last year has decreased once again. As of May this year, the vacancy rate sits at just 1%.
Additionally, Weekly Asking Property Prices to purchase property has been increasing since the mid-2010s, with the asking price for a house over $550,000 – higher than Perth’s median house price.
