Integrating our assets Housing Choices’ diverse property portfolio is distributed across five states and we are reshaping our Asset Management services and teams to enable greater efficiencies and sustainability outcomes. Roles and responsibilities across the organisation have been restructured to optimise asset management and reflect best practice, including state-based property service teams now being managed by the National Assets business unit.
Sustainability wins
Through Housing Choices’ strong relationships with state governments and our proven capability and capacity as one of Australia’s leading community housing providers, we received numerous grants to make sustainability improvements across our national portfolio.
The team has successfully completed close to 50% of the program as of June 2023, well ahead of schedule.
In Victoria, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) granted us funding for significant energy upgrades, including reverse cycle air-conditioners, hot water heat pumps and general building upgrades improving energy e ciency of 420 properties. In addition, we participated in Solar Victoria’s Home Heating and Cooling Program to improve thermal comfort for our residents and reduce their household energy bills. Housing Choices received funding of almost $1.4 million and combined with our own contribution, this enabled us to install 584 energy e cient reverse cycle air conditioning systems and decommission 88 gas heaters. In Western Australia, Housing Choices received $6.75 million as part of the Social Housing Economic Recovery package (SHERP), to improve and upgrade properties across 362 homes by December 2024.
The meaningful change these types of upgrades make to our residents’ lives is summed up by Victorian resident, Anne, who has noticed a huge improvement since solar panels were installed on her roof: “From my first electricity bill I noticed a drastic drop, It was usually about $80 a month and it was about $28. The hot water bill is cheaper too. “Without the solar panels I would be sitting here wrapped up in blankets with no heater on.”
Solar panels installed at our QVM apartments in Melbourne
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Annual Report 2022-23
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