City Futures Research Centre Arts, Design and Architecture

Programs

Housing

The Centre’s Housing theme activity encompasses a wide spectrum of issues related to the governance, financing and development of social and affordable housing as well as the analysis of housing affordability and the operation of private housing markets.

Much of our housing work has involved funded through the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI). AHURI is a national research commissioning body funded by Commonwealth, state and territory Australian governments to address current housing and related policy challenges. UNSW is one of nine participating universities which undertake AHURI-supported projects on a competitive funding basis. While City Futures leads the UNSW AHURI Research Centre, colleagues from across UNSW also contribute to many projects.

The other major source of funding for the Centre’s Housing research activity is the Australian Research Council. Through a series of ARC Discovery and Linkage projects over the past decade, we have undertaken major studies on topics including private rental housing markets, housing financialization and high density housing.

Additionally, Centre staff contributing to Housing theme projects work closely with a range of state governments and agencies, as well as with not-for-profit housing providers and advocacy groups. Many of these collaborations involve funded projects commissioned by such agencies.

Teaching

Housing theme research is closely linked to a number of courses within UNSW Planning Program. The following courses are led by Centre staff who leverage considerable research experience into delivering to students the most up to date knowledge relevant to today’s changing urban landscape:

Projects

Current Projects

A blueprint for tackling Queensland’s housing crisis: 2024 update
Australian Homelessness Monitor 2024
Disruption in regional housing: Policy responses for more resilient markets
Evaluating machinery of government arrangements for housing policy administration
Eviction: How private renters lose their homes and the consequences
From caravans to global capital: the financialisation of older persons’ residential parks, communities and rental villages
Getting off the waiting list. Changing access to housing assistance
Improving coordination of data and actors for disaster-responsive housing and safer communities
Inquiry into Developing a Long-term Governance and Resource Framework for Sustainable and Effective Indigenous Housing
Inquiry into projecting Australia’s urban and regional futures; population dynamics, regional mobility, and planning responses
Inquiry into supporting pathways in a social housing system
NSW Rental Vulnerability Index
Predicting risk to inform housing policy and practice
Queensland Rental Vulnerability Index 2021 Census update
Social and affordable housing: needs, costs and subsidy gaps by region
The precarious city: the suburban settlement in an age of uncertainty
UK Homelessness Monitor
Understanding contemporary demographic and economic drivers of household mobility and their policy implications
Understanding the impact of critical life events can predict early need for housing assistance
Understanding the perceived benefits of living in regional cities

Completed Projects

Publications

City Futures Research Centre (2019) 'Submission to the review of the Boarding Houses Act 2012 (NSW)', CFRC, UNSW Sydney.

Randolph B; Troy L; Milligan V; van den Nouwelant R, 2018, Paying for affordable housing in different market contexts, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute Limited, Melbourne, AHURI Final Report No. 293, 293, 10.18408/ahuri-7113301

Rowley S; James A; Phibbs P; van den Nouwelant R; Troy L, 2017, Government led innovations in affordable housing delivery, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute Limited, Melbourne, 289, 10.18408/ahuri-8113101

Milligan, V, Yates, J and Pawson, H (2016) 'Submission to the Council for Federal Financial Relations Affordable Housing Working Group', City Futures Research Centre, UNSW

Chris Martin (2016) 'Submission to the Review of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW)', City Futures Research Centre, UNSW, Sydney.

Pawson H; Herath S, 2015, Disadvantaged places in urban Australia: Residential mobility, place attachment and social exclusion, AHURI Final Report No. 243, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute Limited, Melbourne, https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/final-reports/243">https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/final-reports/243

Hulse K; Pawson HR; Reynolds M; Herath S, 2014, Disadvantaged Places in Urban Australia: Analysing socio-economic diversity and housing market performance (AHURI Final Report No 225), Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Melbourne, http://www.ahuri.edu.au/publications/download/ahuri_70704_fr2

Cheshire L; Pawson H; Easthope H; Stone W, 2014, Living with Place Disadvantage: community, practice and policy (AHURI Final Report No. 228), Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia, http://www.ahuri.edu.au/publications/download/ahuri_70704_fr4

Easthope H, 2014, 'Making a Rental Property Home', Housing Studies, 10.1080/02673037.2013.873115

Groenhardt, L 2014, Understanding the spatial impacts of direct and indirect government housing expenditure, Final Report no. 234, AHURI, Melbourne. https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/final-reports/234">https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/final-reports/234

Legacy C; Davison G; Liu EY; van den Nouwelant R; Piracha A, 2013, 'Democratic Infrastructure? Delivering affordable housing under Australia's Social Housing Initiative', in Ruming K; Randolph B; Gurran N (eds.), State of Australian Cities Conference 2013: Refereed Proceedings, SOAC Research Network, Sydney, presented at State of Australian Cities Conference 2013, Sydney, 27 - 29 November 2013, http://www.soacconference.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Legacy-Governance.pdf

Davison G; Legacy C; Liu EY; van den Nouwelant R; Piracha A, 2013, 'How and why does community opposition to affordable housing development escalate? “Unsupported development” in Parramatta, NSW', in Ruming K; Randolph B; Gurran N (eds.), State of Australian Cities Conference 2013: Refereed Proceedings, SOAC Research Network, presented at State of Australian Cities Conference 2013, Sydney, 27 - 29 November 2013, http://www.soacconference.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Davison-Social.pdf

Pawson H; Gethin D; Vizel I, 2012, Addressing concentrations of disadvantage: Policy, practice and literature review, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia, http://www.be.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/upload/research/centres/cf/publications/ahuriprojectreports/AHURI_Final_Report_No190.pdf