- New $400 million Housing Enabling Infrastructure Fund to unlock residential land
- Funding will help deliver critical water and power infrastructure to support a pipeline of residential land supply
- Funding will be used to target key metropolitan growth corridors and regional areas
- State Government's Housing Supply Unit will coordinate the delivery of key projects
- Builds on recent $105 million investment to unlock up to 28,000 new homes
- Part of additional $1.3 billion in new housing initiatives in the 2024-25 Mid-year Review and $4.5 billion in additional investment in this term
The 2024-25 Mid-year Review includes a new $400 million Housing Enabling Infrastructure Fund (HEIF) to help deliver thousands of new homes by investing in strategic water and power infrastructure in priority locations across Perth and regional WA.
The Fund will enable up to $100 million per year to be invested by Water Corporation and Western Power in new water, wastewater and electricity infrastructure, supporting a pipeline of residential land supply in priority growth corridors across metropolitan Perth and in key regional centres.
The State Government's Housing Supply Unit will play a key role in coordinating the investment in consultation with industry, local government and other key stakeholders, with recommendations of priority projects to be made to the Residential Lands and Housing Delivery Ministerial Oversight Committee.
This announcement builds on the recent investment of $105 million under the Housing Support Program - Priority Works Stream to support the delivery of up to 28,000 new housing lots across the State, as well as the $80 million Infrastructure Development Fund which is supporting the delivery of 5400 apartments in Perth and 720 homes for key workers in regional WA.
The HEIF is part of the additional $1.3 billion in new housing supply initiatives approved since the 2024-25 Budget, and a record $4.5 billion additional investment since 2021-22, as the Government continues to explore all opportunities to increase housing supply and affordability in WA.
As stated by Treasurer Rita Saffioti:
"We know housing supply remains a critical issue, and this investment will ensure we continue to prioritise strategic investments to unlock more residential land.
"By addressing critical water and power infrastructure needs, we can unlock land in high-priority areas to deliver more homes and support a sustainable pipeline of housing for the future.
"This announcement continues our Government's strong record of investment and legislative reforms to boost housing supply, so more Western Australians can access affordable housing."
As stated by Housing Minister John Carey:
"Our Government remains acutely aware of the housing market across the country and its impact on many Western Australians.
"This is why we're getting on with delivering a record $4.5 billion investment in housing and homelessness measures since 2021-22.
"This additional $400 million Housing Enabling Infrastructure Fund will unlock more residential land, as we continue to drive an ambitious reform program to bolster housing supply across Western Australia.
"The Housing Enabling Infrastructure Fund will help deliver critical water and power infrastructure to support a pipeline of residential land supply across Western Australia.
"Once these critical headworks have been completed, more development-ready residential land will be available.
"We've been very clear - we're not stopping our reforms to bolster housing supply - this remains a key priority for the Cook Labor Government, and we'll keep doing everything we can to ease pressure on the market."
As stated by Water Minister Simone McGurk:
"Unlocking more land for housing is a major priority for the Cook Government, so we can make housing more affordable and give more people the opportunity to own their own homes.
"Water infrastructure is a critical enabler for housing development and this fund is just another way we're working to get more homes built for Western Australians."
As stated by Energy Minister Reece Whitby:
"Housing is a major priority for our Government, and Western Power has an important role to play in ensuring new developments are energised and ready for market as soon as possible.
"This fund will ensure developers can continue building houses at the pace required to meet the needs of Western Australia's aspiring homeowners."
