Faith Housing Australia (FHA) welcomes today's announcement by Minister for Housing Clare O'Neil that Round 3 of the Housing Australia Future Fund (HAFF) is now open, marking the largest round to date and supporting the Government's commitment to deliver 40,000 social and affordable homes by mid-2029, as part of its broader target of 55,000 new homes.
FHA CEO Amanda Bailey said Round 3 represents an important milestone in establishing social and affordable housing as essential national social infrastructure.
"The true impact of the Housing Australia Future Fund is its catalytic effect—establishing social and affordable housing as essential social infrastructure alongside schools, hospitals and transport. Rounds 1 and 2 delivered critical system learnings, and Round 3 builds on this foundation to accelerate delivery."
FHA welcomed the move to a simpler, demand-driven application process and the introduction of dedicated streams for Partnerships at Scale, Housing Diversity and First Nations housing.
"Streamlining the program and introducing partnerships at scale reflects sector feedback and aligns more closely with the development lifecycle of mission-driven organisations. Reducing bid costs and uncertainty will help unlock well-located land held by faith-based organisations and accelerate projects across Australia."
Faith-based community housing providers were selected as preferred partners to deliver more than 10 per cent of the HAFF Round 1 pipeline, demonstrating the sector's readiness and governance capacity to contribute to national delivery.
FHA estimates that, with the right policy settings and funding certainty, faith sector partnerships could develop and deliver more than 20,000 additional dwellings over the next five to ten years on land already owned and embedded in local communities.
"Faith-owned land represents one of Australia's largest underutilised sources of well-located sites for social and affordable housing development. Round 3 creates new opportunities to mobilise this land through partnerships with community housing providers, industry and government."
FHA also welcomed the Government's focus on diverse cohorts, regional communities and the dedicated First Nations stream.
"Housing Diversity and First Nations streams recognise that a one-size-fits-all approach does not work. Faith-based providers are embedded in communities and deliver housing alongside support services for people with no viable option in the private market, including women and children fleeing violence, older Australians on fixed incomes and people exiting homelessness."
Looking ahead, FHA said multi-year funding certainty, clear forward commitments and transparent parameters for funding will be critical to sustaining delivery beyond this round.
"Long-term funding certainty will enable social and affordable housing to be delivered as essential social infrastructure, crowding in private and philanthropic capital and supporting a continuous national pipeline of housing for people who need it most."
"Faith Housing Australia members stand ready to mobilise mission-driven land for redevelopment, aggregate projects and partner at scale to deliver housing that strengthens communities, builds social cohesion and supports long-term social outcomes across Australia."
