Recent update reported by NDIA
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), which administers the NDIS, continues to report quarterly on the number of NDIS participants with SDA funding in their NDIS plan and the number of SDA dwellings enrolled. NDIS Quarterly Reports can be found on the NDIS website.
New housing is needed for an estimated 19,000 NDIS participants over the next 10 years.
The NDIS Quarterly Report for September 2020 reported that as at 30 September 2020 15,240 participants had SDA funding (an increase of around 12% on the 13,581 reported at the same time in 2019), while around 4,400 SDA dwellings have been enrolled as SDA (26% increase on 2019), providing over 12,700 SDA places.
The September 2020 quarterly report provided more information on people with SDA in their NDIS plans. The report now features a table that shows the number of people with SDA in their NDIS plan who are living in SDA and those seeking an alternative dwelling or a new dwelling. This data is broken down by SA4 regions and the design category that the participant has funding for.
Data on in-kind SDA (SDA provided by State Governments) was provided for the first time in the September 2020 quarterly report. This showed, for example, that there are 203 in-kind dwellings in Tasmania and 853 in Victoria.
The first Specialist Disability Accommodation – Supply in Australia report noted limitations with the SDA data
reported by the NDIA. As noted above, a number of these limitations have recently been resolved, however the following identified limitations remain relevant: *The majority of NDIS participants with SDA funding in their plans would likely have transitioned to the NDIS within an existing living arrangement in supported accommodation, often in a group home. These participants automatically had SDA funding included in their plan that reflected their existing living arrangements. With relatively few exceptions, the future housing preferences and reasonable and necessary SDA funding for this population remains unknown.
There are now more than 1,800 new SDA places in the construction pipeline as at Nov 2020 with around 13,000 new SDA places which now exist or are in the pipeline. Beyond this pipeline identified, there remains a significant undersupply of SDA dwellings the report goes on to clarify.
As the market matures, it will become increasingly important for developers to consider the housing needs and preferences of people who have or are eligible for SDA funding to ensure the suitability of any planned development.
This has been motivated by a vision for Australia, where all people with disability have access to high quality housing that meets each person’s requirements and fosters each person’s connection to their communities.
There remain 12,000 people who are eligible for SDA funding likely to be living in government housing, hostels, residential aged care or with family. Once the unmet demand and the need to replace old stock with contemporary models of disability housing is taken into account, new housing is needed for an estimated 19,000 NDIS participants over the next 10 years. With only 5061 dwellings being developed within the next 5 years, further compounding the current undersupply.
The aim is to develop a strong SDA market based on continually acquiring up to date date from industry providers across all spectrum’s of SDA and the NDIS. The SDA market has the potential to be a world-first demonstration of leveraging private capital to deliver quality housing that meets the needs of people with disability at a national scale.
View recent video blog on what to be mindful about when looking for an quality Investment Grade SDA Property, click here
