Victorian Premier Ben Carroll is set to announce a $1 billion election pledge to build 25,000 homes exclusively for first-time buyers if his Labor government is re-elected. The policy, funded by $500 million in state-owned land and a $499 million federal grant, will see homes constructed on government sites including the Arden precinct, the old Footscray hospital and the disused Highett gasworks.
Under the scheme, residences will be built at public expense before being sold at market rates, with only first-home buyers eligible to register to bid. Minister for Housing Nick Staikos described the initiative as a “supply measure” aimed at increasing housing stock rather than inflating demand through grants. “We are leveraging government land and urban renewal on that land so we can provide opportunities for young Victorians to buy their first home,” Mr Staikos told this masthead.
The policy sharpens the divide between Victoria’s major parties on housing. Labor has overhauled planning laws to allow high-rise and medium-density development across Melbourne’s middle suburbs. The Coalition, conversely, wants high-rise apartments limited to an expanded “Capital City Zone” and has promised to restore resident appeal rights against unwanted developments. Premier Carroll warned that a change of government would scrap the 25,000 first-home buyer properties. “They have opposed Labor’s plans to build more homes, every step of the way. They’ve fought it in Parliament – they’ve even fought it on the streets of Brighton,” Mr Carroll said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese foreshadowed the announcement at the Melbourne Assembly on Tuesday, confirming the federal government’s partnership. Victoria has also become the first state to qualify for the Commonwealth’s $350 million “New Homes Bonus”, and will receive $2 billion in no-interest loans for enabling infrastructure on 66,000 new dwellings.
Grattan Institute housing policy expert Matthew Bowes said the seven-year timeframe to deliver the 25,000 homes appeared “plausible”, and consistent with the practice of Development Victoria. However, he noted the key question was whether direct government development was necessary or whether selling the land to commercial builders would be more efficient. The scheme is modeled on a South Australian program and forms part of a broader $10 billion federal pitch to young voters ahead of the 2025 federal election. New South Wales has yet to sign up to a comparable scheme.