Housing commission

Public housing rorts cost $53m a year
BY NICK RALSTON
April 3, 2008


People who rort the NSW public housing system are costing taxpayers up to $53 million a year, prompting a new crackdown by the state government.

It comes after recent investigations found people owning as many as 16 properties or running two businesses were claiming assistance through the public housing system.

Tenant cheats have now been given a three-month amnesty period to come forward and correct their tenancy details, including their income, or risk being sent to jail.

NSW Housing Minister Matt Brown said the Tenancy Fraud Bill 2008, to be introduced into parliament on Thursday, would give the government new powers to pursue cheats and frauds.

"Public housing is a scarce resource, and it's my job to ensure we allocate it to those with genuine need," Mr Brown told reporters.

"What this new law is all about is cracking down on cheats.

"We're going to crack down on cheats who own homes, businesses, boats and then expect the taxpayers to subsidise their rent as well."

The new powers will allow the Department of Housing to cross-check with other government agencies, to see what assets public housing tenants own or what businesses they may be operating.

The legislation will also allow the government to go after illegal occupants of public housing who are not tenants.

A new offence of failure to notify change of conditions will be created, with the maximum punishment being a jail sentence.

Mr Brown said the $53 million lost each year could go to providing an additional 200 homes to people who actually needed them.

The current waiting list for public housing in NSW is around 40,000.

"I just can't believe that anyone thinks they can get a taxpayer subsidised rent when we've got people in real need, the aged ... some homeless people, people with disability," Mr Brown said.

"I think they are pretty rotten to think they can get a house, subsidised by the taxpayer ... and deny many people who are in need of homes."

Recent examples of fraud include a tenant in Sydney's eastern suburbs who was claiming public housing assistance while running a painting and decorating business and owning 16 investment properties in NSW and South Australia.

The owner of two real estate agencies, who was also a director of a finance company, was also recently caught rorting public housing assistance. That tenant now owes $16,000 to the department.

"If people are driving around in fancy BMWs and wanting a Department of Housing home, then they are ... looking at the wrong type of home," Mr Brown said.

2010 AAP
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People who rort the NSW public housing system are costing taxpayers up to $53 million a year, prompting a new crackdown by the state government.***

And this is just NSW alone... and the ones they know about.

so 200 homes and that is the extent of the rort? with 40,000 on a wait list, 200 homes ain't going to go very far

......and if you took a drive through some of Sydney's eastern and northern suburbs, I think you might be a little horrified with some of these DOH properties with BMW's parked in the driveways sucking up some of Sydney's best water views.


I commend those who are doing the right thing, this and those who genuinely need them, but with respects to our housing ministers findings in the 2008 report....I think it's fair to say that more than just a 'few' are wronging the system here at the tax payers expense, this and disadvantaging those 'truly' entitled people these properties were always intended for.

Such a shame.

Sad Very un-Australian indeed.


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And again, this is only those they 'know' to be doing the wrong thing.

And lest we forget, those they do 'KNOW' about being tossed out, and how this would undoubtedly free up more properties for those truly "deserving" people who need them most.

Add this to your extra 200 houses, and what do you get?

Much more than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick....BMW aside.


The capacity to accommodate more of the genuinely needy, along with 200+ new houses for starters. The only houses the government are interested in building are those in remote rural areas developers aren't interested in given the land value.

And again, the government are 'slowly' privatising the system.. .. are leasing more and more properties off developers who really don't care who is occupying them, just so long as the someone is.

The department are slowly selling off and demolishing existing department owned houses to make way for developer entrepreneurship.



And these developers don't really care if these properties are being ran into the ground, they only expect them to last 10 or so years, (are cheaply built, practically disposable) at which point they either sell them off privately before they depreciate too much or bull dose estates and sell off the land at a profit.

It's a win/win...the government get to relinquish a certain amount of responsibility, this and aren't obliged to build more ghastly ghettos they have to maintain themselves. The developers are assured their takings, given the department deduct the rent from the tenants benefits automatically in many cases should they fall behind rent...and who's responsibility is it to maintain the properties being leased off the developers?

Given most of them are new, little goes wrong within the first 10 years anyway ....so all is good, except if you happen to be one of the genuinely needy of the 40 odd thousand individuals in NSW on the current waiting list sleeping on a park bench or out of your car.

Why do you think we are seeing a rise in "forever stayers" in camping sites and caravan parks? Because the dog shit poor fancy a holiday all year round?



Happy housing...I have to hit the sack.

Thanx for the chat.

And to think, no hair pulling tonight by either one of us

In another 10 years, there wont be an incentive to rort the system anymore, and the government are making damn sure of it....as the developers begin to throw their weight around and demand higher returns because they can...they have the bargaining power to do so. The government will be looking after the developers first, then the people....the genuinely needy will as they are now, increasingly become an after thought. If that.

The security which traditionally came with occupying a housing commission property, will no longer apply, developers wont want these properties being ran into the ground, and as our population grows, and the demand for more affordable private housing increases...these developers will flog off huge chunks to the millions of immigrants we plan to expand our population and economy with over the next decade and beyond.

This is why they are beginning to move people out of existing older government owned properties in droves now and into new developer owned semi-private properties, which are not like the traditional government housing properties, which were yours virtually until you died.

How do I know this?

Because my mother manages a community service ....and all her oldies in government housing are being relocated to developer leased properties.

The older department owned houses are costing too much to maintain... their land value being worth more than the house itself in most cases.