Welcome to Homegrown

As a major sponsor of the upcoming CHIA NSW Conference ‘Community Housing 2023 – Purpose, Partnerships, Progress last week, Landcom’s Matthew Beggs sat down with CHIA CEO Mark Degotardi to discuss the challenges and opportunities in Affordable Housing, and reflect on what’s working and what success looks like.

Meet our new Director Business Development, Janelle Goulding who leads our dedicated Affordable Housing program. In this video Janelle shares her background, her passion for Affordable Housing and her planned approach to deliver Landcom’s Affordable Housing targets for both metropolitan Sydney and regional NSW. 

MOU with Orange City Council to tackle housing affordability

We are so pleased that the number of regional organisations committed to working with Landcom to address housing supply, affordability and diversity in their communities is growing.  

Orange City Council and Landcom have signed an agreement to deliver affordable and sustainable housing  and provide diverse housing choices to meet the needs of low to moderate income households in Orange.  

Matthew Beggs, Executive General Manager of Business Development at Landcom said, “This Agreement reflects our alignment with Council’s housing objectives and a collaborative approach to deliver housing in a way that meets the local needs”.

”When the Community Strategic Plan was developed last year, housing affordability was the number one issue facing the Orange community. This agreement to deliver Affordable Housing will support the ongoing quality of life for all of our residents, both now and in the future,” Mark Hodges from Orange City Council said.

Artist impression of Schofields

Our intention is to release 650 dwellings for development to the Community Housing sector this year. This is just the start of course, but we are encouraged by what we have achieved in a relatively short time.

We have Affordable Housing tenders coming up at Edmondson Park and Macarthur Gardens North. 

Tenders are now closed for the development of Affordable Housing at Lismore (Lismore LGA), Mullumbimby (Byron LGA) and Schofields (Blacktown LGA) in Western Sydney. 

Partnerships are essential to our approach, and these projects involve partnerships with Lismore City Council, Byron Shire Council, Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation and National Housing Finance & Investment Corporation (NHFIC).  

Landcom CEO Alex Wendler Speaking at the Local Government NSW Regional & Rural Conference in February 2023

“We are taking a needs-based approach to housing,” Landcom CEO Alex Wendler said. 

“As we know, regional NSW has been hit hard by natural disasters and household migration. Undersupply of Affordable Housing is further exacerbating the housing crisis, and impacting local economies. This is why Landcom is stepping in and stepping up to make a bigger difference.  

“Hearing local stories from community leaders about these issues really bring focus and heart to our work,” Alex Wendler said.  

Matthew Beggs, General Manager Business Development at Landcom said, “We’ve set up a specialist team dedicated to delivering Affordable Housing, including in the regions. I’m thrilled that Janelle Goulding has joined us to head up this important work.”

Artist impression of North Tuncurry

Our long awaited North Tuncurry Urban Release proposal has been finalised with 615 hectares of Crown Land rezoned for development. 

“This inspiring project will provide 2,100 homes, with at least 10% Affordable Rental Housing for low and moderate income earning households, as well as liveable and diverse housing, and we aspire to do more,” said Development Director Kemal Hughes. 

The project will deliver parks and a village centre, community centre and surf lifesaving facilities. 

This project at North Tuncurry is an important step forward in supporting the local economy and providing future opportunities for locals to live and work in their community. 

“I’m especially excited by the sustainability focus of this project. Biodiversity, heritage and Traditional Owners have informed our plans to conserve over half the site, or 327 hectares including unique coastal ecology, and support access and connection to the foreshore,” said Kemal Hughes.  

 Approval for subdivision is the next step, as we work through the important biodiversity requirements. 

Meet our new CEO, Alex Wendler. In this video Alex describes his background, his passion for making a bigger difference and his vision for Landcom’s future.

Learn about Landcom’s new Statement of Priorities, our new focus on affordable housing in regional NSW and how we are reaching out to work with more regional stakeholders.

Building on our affordable housing demonstration projects in Sydney’s Northern Beaches at North Manly and Lachlan’s Line in Macquarie Park, we continue to expand our pipeline of affordable housing projects across Metropolitan Sydney and regional NSW. 

We recently announced new affordable housing projects in regional NSW where we are partnering with Lismore City Council to deliver more than 60 affordable housing dwellings across two sites. 

Landcom’s new Statement of Priorities challenges us to expand Landcom’s business to build a portfolio of projects in regional NSW.

Landcom is working across all tiers of government to address many of the issues impacting the supply of affordable housing in regional NSW. Communities across regional NSW who were already experiencing housing pressures, are now faced with further pressures due to an increase in internal migration numbers into the regions resulting from COVID-19 and significant climate events that have reduced available housing stock.

We are working with Local Councils in several regions including Lismore and Byron to identify council assets that can be better utilised through partnerships with Community Housing Providers, to enable more affordable housing for their communities.

We are inviting Local Councils to leverage our development expertise where needed, to generate new housing solutions.

Our partnership with National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) enables Landcom, Community Housing providers, Local Aboriginal Land Councils and Local Councils to access concessional finance, infrastructure finance and development opportunities to deliver more affordable housing in the regions.

Landcom’s new Statement of Priorities challenges us to raise the target of affordable housing, including rental and freehold sale, to at least 20% across Landcom’s portfolio of regional projects by 2025, with a goal of 30% in regional NSW beyond that date, subject to market conditions. 

During 2022 Landcom has started working with councils in northern NSW. Through our new regional projects at Lismore and Mullumbimby we are aiming to meet, if not exceed, these affordable housing targets. Read more about this partnership  

Partnerships are essential to getting this right. That is why we are reaching out to regional stakeholders like local councils and Local Aboriginal Land Councils to work together with us to deliver more affordable housing in a way that meets their local community needs. 

Please contact Matthew Beggs, Executive General Manager Partnerships & Business Development at Landcom for more information about working with us to deliver more affordable housing. 

What if electricity generated within a community was available for consumption by the community?

Developed in collaboration with Landcom, Campbelltown City Council and Sourced Energy, with support from LGNSW with funding from the NSW Government, Creating a Spark shows how councils and communities can prepare and take action on energy sharing and begin to develop energy sharing communities.

The Creating a Spark guide:

• introduces the concept of an energy sharing community
• provides an overview of technologies, electricity market rules and regulations
• shows how councils and developers can encourage local generation and future opportunities for energy sharing.

You're invited to join a free webinar between 11am and 12pm on Tuesday 29 November 2022 for an introduction to energy sharing and a panel discussion to hear how councils and communities can begin or enhance their energy sharing journey. Register here

An online version of the guide with additional information is available here

Please contact Paul Himberger, Sustainability & Research Manager at Landcom with any questions or feedback.

We discuss the foundations of our sustainability approach as we come to the five year mark for our current Sustainable Places Strategy, and explain our evolving approach to meeting targets.

We unpack the stretch targets we have set ourselves in the delivery of climate resilient communities and explain the critical role that research, and partnership will play in reaching our goals.  

Social sustainability is central to our approach. We explain how we are working to enhance the wellbeing of our communities and the tools we use to do this. 

In just over 10 years as Chair and then as Chief Executive Officer, John Brogden has left a lasting mark on Landcom.

He created a legacy recognised and valued by staff, our customers, the development industry and our government and not-for-profit stakeholders; modelling and nurturing a culture of leadership, collaboration and compassion.

Since Landcom was created in 1976 we have worked with stakeholders and developers to proudly deliver over 220 projects and over 100,000 homesites.

In this anniversary year, we reflect on the projects that demonstrate Landcom's leadership and innovation, and highlight our unique role at the intersection of industry and government.

COVID-19 has highlighted the needs of individual households, as well as those of wider communities. Our homes, neighbours, local amenities and public spaces have become our safe places.

What does this mean for the future of healthy living and working, the built environment, urban design, open spaces and for the future of our communities?

Exemplar project

When Landcom first began its partnership with Greenfields Development Company back in 2003, the plan was to work in conjunction with Camden Council to turn a former raceway and dairy into a masterplanned community

Fast forward 18 years, we reflect back on the achievement of Oran Park Town with those whose vision and expertise helped bring this community to life.

Exemplar project

Landcom designed and developed Renwick on behalf of the landowner, the Department of Family and Community Services, to create a village that celebrates the character of the Southern Highlands.

Future-focussed, Renwick looked to test the market for diverse and affordable housing in rural communities.