Civitas-Solutions Australia assists local governments and future owner occupiers to establish new site specific housing co-operatives. Housing co-operatives are incorporated under the relevant State Government Co-operatives Act and must have a minimum of 5 members who meet the housing co-operative's eligibility criteria.
Each housing co-operative is governed by a set of detailed rules and these rules are binding on the members and the housing co-operative. Each applicant for membership will be provided with a detailed disclosure statement setting out in detail of the site specific housing co-operative process. Please note each housing co-operative rules and disclosure statement will be different and specific to the site requirements and membership base.
The housing co-operatives eligibility criteria for membership may include, for example:
- essential services workers e.g police, nurses, emergency services workers, teachers and child care workers;
- community members over the age of 65 or with disabilities whose current housing is not suitable;
- low to middle income earners who have been priced out of the local market but are otherwise eligible for a housing loan.
Most housing co-operative members will require a loan to purchase their dwelling on the completion of construction. Therefore as all applicants requiring finance must as condition of membership:
- have a pre-approval letter from their financial institution confirming that they meet the relevant loan criteria to purchase their dwelling as at the date of application for membership;
or
- evidence that at the completion of construction the applicant for membership will have the financial capacity to purchase their dwelling.
“Owner occupier housing co-operatives are not new. Between 1930 and 1990 dozens of housing co-operatives were established in NSW to assist first home buyers to purchase their own home. Did your parents or grandparents buy their first home through a NSW housing co-operative?
Each housing co-operative is site specific within the local government area.
The members of the housing co-operative elect a board of the housing co-operative to oversee the construction of the dwellings to be purchased on completion by the members. The board must consist of a majority of members with a limited number of independent directors.
The board must appoint a suitably qualified project manager to advise and assist the board to undertake a tender process to appoint qualified and insured builders. The project manager role is to assist the board to oversee the construction process.
Once plans are finalised members will be invited to nominate their preferred dwelling for purchase on completion of construction. On completion members will acquire title to their dwelling freehold, strata title or community title subject to the nature of the dwellings.
Each housing co-operative rules will be different depending on the circumstances and the details of each project. Each disclosure statement will also be different depending on the membership and site requirements.
THIS INFORMATION IS FOR GENERAL USE ONLY AS EACH HOUSING CO-OPERATIVE WILL HAVE DIFFERENT RULES AND SITE SPECIFIC DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
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