Housing Act 2001

This Act is the Housing Act 2001.

This Act commences, or is taken to have commenced, on 1 July 2001.

In this Act—

building includes any part of a building and any appurtenance to a building, any fence, wall and any other structure or a part of a structure and any provision for lighting, heating, refrigeration, water supply, drainage or sewerage.

Commonwealth State agreement includes any agreement to which the Commonwealth and the State are parties, whether or not other persons or bodies are also parties to the agreement.

Corporation means the New South Wales Land and Housing Corporation constituted by this Act.

council has the same meaning as it has in the Local Government Act 1993.

Department means the department in which this Act is administered.

exercise a function includes perform a duty.

function includes a power, duty or authority.

Home Purchase Assistance Fund means the fund established under the trust deed entitled “Trust Deed establishing the Home Purchase Assistance Fund”, being an agreement entered into on 14 February 1989 between the State, the Department of Housing, the Treasury, Permanent Custodians Limited and Permanent Trustee Company Limited.

house or housing means any kind of dwelling.

Housing Account means the account established under section 63.

housing area means a housing area constituted under section 36.

Housing Reserve Fund means the Housing Reserve Fund established under section 66.

proprietor in relation to land means the proprietor of a legal or equitable estate of fee simple in the land.

public authority means any public or local authority constituted by or under an Act other than this Act.

public housing means housing owned or leased by the Corporation or Minister, and managed by the Department, that is leased to members of the public that meet the Department’s or the Corporation’s eligibility criteria, but does not include housing leased to a person in accordance with the HomeFund Restructuring Act 1993 or that is substituted for housing leased in accordance with that Act or housing subject to a concurrent lease to a registered community housing provider.

registered community housing provider has the same meaning as it has in the Community Housing Providers National Law (NSW).

Secretary means the Secretary of the Department.

Note.

The Interpretation Act 1987 contains definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Act.

Notes included in this Act are explanatory notes and do not form part of this Act.

Note.

For the purposes of comparison, a number of provisions of this Act contain bracketed notes in headings drawing attention (“cf”) to equivalent or comparable (though not necessarily identical) provisions of other Acts that are the subject of repeal by this Act.

The objects of this Act are as follows—

to maximise the opportunities for all people in New South Wales to have access to secure, appropriate and affordable housing,

to ensure that housing opportunities and assistance are available to all sections of the community with housing needs,

to ensure that public housing is developed as a viable and diversified form of housing choice,

to ensure that public housing and community housing reflects the housing standards of the general community and is designed to cater for the ongoing needs of consumers,

to maximise the opportunities for tenants of public and community housing programs to participate in the management of their housing and in the development of public and community housing policies,

to ensure that the public housing system focuses on housing people who are most in need,

to ensure that the available supply of public housing is shared equitably among people who are most in need,

to promote equity between levels of assistance provided to people living in public housing, community housing, private rental housing and those who own or are purchasing their homes,

to maintain an efficient housing administration to ensure the effective co-ordination and provision of all housing services,

to encourage social mix and the integration of different housing forms in existing and new communities,

to ensure that registered community housing is developed as a viable and diversified component of the New South Wales social housing sector,

to support the provision of registered community housing for people on a very low, low or moderate income,

to facilitate the provision of assistance to home purchasers on low to moderate incomes,

to provide for the management of such existing and future home purchase assistance schemes (including the portfolio of loans under HomeFund schemes) as the Minister directs,

to provide for the funding of such other rental and home purchase assistance schemes as the Minister directs,

to encourage the development of flexible and innovative financial arrangements to facilitate access to home ownership for persons in receipt of low and moderate incomes,

to ensure appropriate mechanisms and forums are established to allow input into housing policy by representative community organisations and non-government agencies involved in housing policy and provision,

to attract investment in public housing, including related activities such as tenant employment and the provision of integrated services,

to enable the provision under this Act of corporate, technical and information technology services, in or outside New South Wales, to government and non-government agencies.

In the administration of this Act, regard is to be had to the objects of this Act to the maximum extent possible taking into consideration the needs of the State and available resources, and subject to any directions of the Minister.

There is constituted by this Act a body corporate with the corporate name of the New South Wales Land and Housing Corporation.

The affairs of the Corporation are to be managed by the Secretary.

Any act, matter or thing done in the name of, or on behalf of, the Corporation by the Secretary, or with the authority of the Secretary, is taken to have been done by the Corporation.

The Corporation is, for the purposes of any Act, a statutory body representing the Crown.

The Corporation is subject to the direction and control of the Minister.

(Repealed)

The Corporation may exercise any of its functions, and may otherwise act, in the name of the Department.

The Corporation and the Department are, to the maximum extent possible, to act in a complementary manner, so as to achieve a unified administration of this Act.

The Corporation—

has the functions conferred on it by or under this or any other Act and may do such supplemental, incidental and consequential acts as may be necessary or expedient for the exercise of its functions, and

has such other functions as are necessary to implement any Commonwealth State agreement, in so far as it relates to housing.

The Corporation is to manage financial risks associated with its activities.

(Repealed)

In this section—

develop includes re-develop.

public purpose includes any purpose for which land may be acquired under any other Act.

residential development includes the expansion, establishment and re-development of residential areas.

The Corporation has the following functions—

to acquire land for present or future residential development and for public purposes,

from time to time, as prevailing circumstances require, to develop and make available, or to make available for development by others, such of the land so acquired as the Corporation considers necessary or expedient for residential development and for public purposes.

(Repealed)

(Repealed)

The Corporation has the following functions—

to develop policies for home purchase assistance and to make recommendations to the Minister on such matters,

to manage such existing and future home purchase assistance schemes as are from time to time directed by the Minister.

Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the Corporation has the following functions—

to determine guidelines for the eligibility of applicants for home purchase assistance,

to determine the terms and conditions of loans or other assistance to those applicants,

to advertise and market home purchase assistance,

to provide information to the public on home purchase and home purchase assistance,

to make loans or grants or give other financial assistance, with or without security, to eligible applicants,

to manage loans, including to collect repayments and arrears and realise securities,

to manage the Housing Reserve Fund and any contingency fund in relation to home purchase assistance, as directed by the Minister.

The Corporation has the following functions—

to carry out all such surveys and investigations into issues related to housing as may be necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act, or for the purpose of ascertaining the housing conditions in any locality,

to publish for general information the results of any such survey or investigation,

to publish from time to time in printed form or on the Internet matter dealing with housing,

to take steps by the holding of architectural competitions or otherwise to obtain the better design and arrangement of houses and of subdivisions of land for houses and related purposes,

to recommend the making of regulations under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 concerning any matter relating to building,

to give to any person such advice or assistance of a technical or architectural nature, and such advice of a financial nature, on matters relating to housing, as the Corporation may from time to time determine.

Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the Corporation may—

provide to any person or organisation corporate services, information technology services, advice and associated products, and

provide to persons or organisations involved in the provision of housing, or that are part of the housing industry, technical services, advice or associated products.

A function referred to in subsection (2) may be exercised within or outside the State.

The Corporation may charge for the provision of services, advice or products in accordance with this Act.

In the exercise of its functions the Corporation is, as far as practicable—

to consult with public authorities whose functions include those of the same or of a similar nature, and

to negotiate with any such authorities for the purpose of arranging or providing services and facilities on land vested in the Corporation.

(Repealed)

In the exercise of its functions relating to the provision of public housing, the Corporation is, as far as practicable, to consult with public housing tenants and organisations representing the interests of public housing tenants.

The Corporation may make and enter into contracts with any person for the carrying out of works or the performance of services or the supply of goods or materials in connection with the exercise by the Corporation of its functions.

A contract under subsection (1) may provide for—

the whole or any part of any works to be undertaken by the Corporation, or

the whole or any part of the cost of any works to be paid by the Corporation, or

a loan to be made by the Corporation to meet the whole or any part of the cost of any works, or

the Corporation to pay the cost of providing any services during a specified period.

Without affecting the generality of subsection (1), the Corporation may make and enter into a contract under this section with any person for the construction on land vested in the Corporation or that person, or in the Corporation and that person, of buildings or of other works, and for the sale, lease or exchange of any such land together with the buildings or other works on the land.