There is no requirement in the rezoning proposal for new developments to include any affordable housing in this area.
Instead, we are just likely to see more expensive $1million plus apartments go on sale. Construction costs are high in Sydney and apartments are more expensive to build per square metre than houses. While older homes have the advantage of being built at a time when construction was much cheaper.
And these apartments are unlikely to be the 3 bedroom apartments that families are desperately seeking in the Inner West.
According to property journalist, Jonathan Chancellor:
The majority of new apartment housing is 75 square-metre, two-bedroom apartments. It is calculated three-bedroom apartments only make up between three per cent to 6% of all apartments.
Even worse, to build these 2 bedroom apartments they will be knocking down 3+ bedroom houses in an area that is more affordable than the rest of Leichhardt and surrounding areas. These homes have sold for over 20% under the going market price of houses elsewhere in the suburb, which is the commonly used definition for affordable housing. This is because these homes are on or off busy Tebbutt Street and aren’t as popular.
So this means removing a large number of relatively affordable family homes with backyards to be replaced with 2 bedroom apartments that will not be much cheaper.
Read the Lungs Of Leichhardt Submission to Council
For more information on this and other issues, see the Lungs of Leichhardt community group’s full submission to the Inner West Council.