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Agencies and vendors can help increase Australia’s stock of affordable housing by formally donating money with each sale.
Homes for Homes is a new initiative that aims to raise money for housing by asking parties involved in property transactions to make a tax-deductible donation whenever a home is sold.
The donation is 0.1 per cent of the sale price, which equates to a $500 donation on a $500,000 sale.
Donations are made through a caveat on the property title, at the request of the owner.
This caveat stays in place when the property is transferred to the new owner so that donations continue to be made for all future sales – although owners can remove the caveat at any time.
Funds raised will be invested with developers to build emergency housing for women and children, specialised youth housing centres and housing for low-income earners.
Homes for Homes has been projected to raise $1.8 billion over the next 20 to 30 years, based on a 1 per cent uptake.
That forecast has been made by the organisation behind the initiative, The Big Issue: a magazine that supports the homeless and people in long-term unemployment.
Homes for Homes has received seed funding from the federal government and South Australian government.
Property developers Grocon and Capital Estate Developments have agreed to back the initiative by committing housing stock from large-scale developments.
Telstra chief executive Andy Penn, Goldman Sachs senior chairman Terry Campbell and AMP chairman Simon McKeon are serving on the Homes for Homes advisory group.
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