Renters To Benefit From Affordable Homes Initiative

Renters will likely be glad to hear of the recent announcement from the Australian government.

It has been confirmed that the National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) has successfully delivered 8,600 affordable homes across Australia.

The June 2012 NRAS Performance Report was released yesterday (July 16) in Adelaide by the minister for housing and homelessness Brendan O’Connor.

"We know that housing affordability is a major concern for many households, including here in South Australia," Mr O'Connor said.

"Today's report confirms that we are continuing to help make rental accommodation more affordable for Australians on low and moderate incomes."

The scheme provides financial incentives to developers to build homes and rent them out for at least 20 per cent less than the market rate to low income households.

Residents struggling to make ends meet may have a chance to turn things around with the affordable rental options provided by the NRAS.

"The NRAS Monthly Performance Report shows that over the past 12 months, approximately 2,500 new apartments, 900 townhouses and 1,300 houses were completed across the country," Mr O’Connor said.

The initiative is far from finished, with several thousand more projects in the pipeline in for the coming months.