Hi, I'm Clare Richards, Housing Solutions Broker, at Mount Alexander Shire Council.

Keep reading for an update on some of Council's recent work in the affordable housing area.

At the June meeting of Council, Councillors unanimously agreed on a proposal to establish the Mount Alexander Affordable Housing Trust.

The trust will be an independent charitable organisation which will hold lands and funds for the development of affordable housing locally.

This is a very exciting option to help address the housing shortage in our community.

Council has allocated $500K from our 2024-2025 Budget to the trust because we believe it will make a positive and long-lasting difference to the lives of our residents.

I’m proud to say that we’re one of only a handful of local governments in Australia to try something this unique.

There’s a lot involved so if you’d like to find out more, visit the Mount Alexander Affordable Housing Trust page.

You can even ask me a question through Shape and I’ll answer it directly.

Express your interest in joining our Affordable Housing Trust Advisory Committee

The next step in setting up the Affordable Housing Trust is establishing an advisory committee to represent the community and support the Trustee.

Council is inviting members of the community to express their interest in joining the committee – and I highly encourage you to get involved in this incredible initiative.

We’re looking for six representatives to advise the trust on housing needs in the shire, provide advice and represent the community.

This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone wanting to make practical and sustainable change in our community.

Find out more on the Mount Alexander Affordable Housing Trust page.

Chatting with the Mount Alexander Shire community

I’ve been out and about chatting to our community about affordable housing in Mount Alexander Shire, and spreading the word about the Mount Alexander Affordable Housing Trust.

You may have heard me on MainFM last week speaking to Bruce Carruthers, presenter of The Bigger Picture about the trust. It was a great opportunity to have news about the trust broadcast directly to our community.

It was also really good to have Bruce ask questions because it meant I could provide detailed answers and, afterwards, do some more planning about how we communicate about the trust. It’s quite a complex topic so making sure we communicate it effectively is very important.

I’ve also been in meetings with the Maine Ministers and My Home Network. These were really valuable conversations because they’re community members in the best position to provide knowledge and thoughts on affordable housing across the shire.

Listening posts

I’ll be joining some of our Councillors at their upcoming listening posts which is a great opportunity for us to chat face-to-face about the trust and the advisory committee.

Stop by to learn more, ask questions and express your interest in joining the committee.

Elphinstone listening post
When: Thursday 1 August, 9.00am to 11.00am
Where: Elphinstone Post Office and General Store, Bateman Street, Elphinstone

Castlemaine listening post
When: Saturday 3 August, 10.00am to 12.00pm
Where: Wesley Hill Community Market, 149 Pyrenees Highway, Castlemaine

Details about face-to-face listening posts in the shire are available on the Let's keep talking page.

Find out more

There’s lots to learn and unpack about Council’s commitment to increasing affordable housing in our shire.

There are a number of ways to stay informed:

1.Subscribe to my updates by clicking the ‘Follow’ button on the Let's talk about affordable housing page. Tell your friends!

2.Ask me a question and I’ll reply directly by visiting the Ask a question about the affordable housing trust page.

3.Read our media release about the Mount Alexander Affordable Housing Trust: Council commits $500K to affordable housing trust for community.

4.If you have more questions or would like to submit your Expression of Interest for membership of the Advisory Committee to the trust in another way, contact me by emailing affordablehousing@mountalexander.vic.gov.au or calling 5471 1700.

Thanks for reading and please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any thoughts or questions.

Clare Richards
Housing Solutions Broke, Mount Alexander Shire Council

Snapshot on affordable housing in our shire:

• $445 is the median weekly rent in the shire
• The availability of affordable rentals has declined by 20% since 2015
• Only 13% of available rentals are affordable
• At least 14% of shire households are in mortgage stress
• 5,696 more people will call the shire home by 2046
• More than 700 households in the shire have an unmet need for affordable housing.