
Western Sydney councils are leading the way in addressing the housing crisis, according to new research by Housing Now!
The organisation graded Greater Sydney’s 32 local councils on key housing criteria, with western and southwestern councils emerging as top performers.
Housing Now! Chair David Borger said the report card aimed to highlight which councils were excelling and which needed improvement in tackling the ongoing housing crisis.
“Our report card simply lays out which councils are at the top of the class and those needing to improve,” Mr Borger said.
Blacktown and Fairfield received A grades, primarily due to their strong performance in housing completions, meeting new housing targets, and prompt housing assessment rates.
Wollondilly, Camden, and Ryde scored B grades.
In contrast, several north Sydney councils including Willoughby, North Sydney, Mosman, Woollahra, Ku-ring-gai, and Hunters Hill received F grades.
The assessment criteria included housing development application rates, social and affordable housing units, contribution to housing affordability, and support for the Transport-Oriented Development Policy.
Only one-third of councils achieved a passing grade of C or higher.
The research also revealed that 80% of councils in Greater Sydney are meeting less than half of their local demand for social and affordable housing.
Almost a quarter of councils are meeting less than 10% of their local need for social and affordable housing.
Committee for Sydney housing spokesperson Estelle Grech criticised the poor-performing councils, particularly those in the “leafy north shore”.
“Some councils in Sydney need to stop focusing on how they can say no, and start asking why not,” Ms Grech said.
She praised middle-city councils like Ryde for approving more housing in existing communities quickly.
However, Ms Grech singled out Mosman for criticism, noting it had built only 16 homes over 12 months.
“Mosman on the other hand, with only 16 homes built over 12 months has to stop dragging their feet and step up to their very modest target of 100 homes a year,” she said.
Mr Borger emphasised the importance of addressing the housing crisis across all levels of government.
“The stakes are simply too high to maintain the status quo,” he said.
Housing Now! is an alliance of industry bodies, unions, councils, and community groups advocating for affordable housing in Sydney.