Redland, Logan in grips of housing emergency with councils criticised for lack of action

Brisbane’s southside is in the grips of a massive housing crisis after the recent flood and a lack of planning has meant families now face homelessness.

Brisbane’s southside is facing a massive housing crisis after an alarming tightening in the rental market, exacerbated by the recent flood.

State parliament was told on Thursday that Redland was facing an unprecedented rental and housing shortage, forcing hundreds of families to move out of the southeast and leaving others homeless.

Parliament heard the heartbreaking stories about rocketing rents forcing Redland families to take children out of school and move to find cheaper rent while others have been forced out of the area after 30 years.

The neighbouring city of Logan is also in the grips of a housing emergency with 90 families displaced during this month's flood and rental accommodation at a premium.

Capalaba MP Don Brown blamed the housing squeeze in Redland on a lack of planning at the local government level and said there was no end in sight to the misery for an average southside family renting.

Redland City Council however hit back with a spokesperson saying: “To claim that Council’s housing strategy is a contributing factor to the shortage is incorrect.

“Council is responsible for ensuring there is an adequate supply of land for housing to meet the future population forecasts set by the State Government and identified in the SEQ Regional Plan and it has done this.

“Council cannot force landowners to build units - this is a decision made by the market.”

Mr Brown said the main problem was the council allowing developers to build houses on land allocated for units, reducing the housing rental stock.

However a Redland City Council spokesperson said there was a significant supply of land available for units.

“A much-needed improvement in State transport infrastructure would encourage developers to take up more opportunities to build units and apartments in key centres such as Capalaba and Cleveland.

“This includes a duplication of the Cleveland rail line, extending the Eastern Busway to Capalaba, as well as upgrades to key State-controlled roads.”

People ready to inspect a Brisbane rental property while Redland and Logan are in the grips of a rental housing crisis. PHOTO: Steve Pohlner

It was Redland City Council’s “outdated” 11-year-old housing strategy, drafted by the previous mayor using 2006 census data, which Mr Brown claimed was exacerbating the problem.

“The strategy is that old, it does not even include Victoria Point as a retail centre or deal with the growth of the southern Moreton Bay islands,” he told parliament.

“We are seeing this council actively work against supply and diversity of housing, allowing developers to build houses where units were supposed to go in medium density zoning, which is already at short supply.

“It is taking mum-and-dad developers to court over small land splitting proposals which the council loses and ends up costing ratepayers thousands.”

However the Redland City Council spokesperson said the council had progressed land use and infrastructure planning for two newly emerging communities in south west Victoria Point and southern Redland Bay, which are expected to accommodate more than 5500 new lots, including providing opportunities for lots below 400sqm.

They also said that when the council took legal action against a development proposal, it was on the basis that the application breached the intent of the City Plan.

The council spokesperson said its Housing Strategy 2011-2031 was still current and was prepared to inform the City Plan which came into effect in 2018.

“Council continues to regularly review its City Plan to support new and innovative housing types for changing demographic profiles and affordability while ensuring high quality design outcomes are achieved,” they said.

For example, a package of City Plan amendments has been prepared to encourage well-designed multiple dwelling housing (apartments and townhouses) across the city, providing greater diversity of housing options and increasing affordability while supporting improved public transport services and enhancing the economic vitality of centres.

“More recently, Council has submitted another package of amendments to the State Government which includes measures to support new and emerging housing types such as rooming accommodation and auxiliary dwellings.

“Council recognises that housing strategies are valuable and believes the best time to undertake a new strategy is to inform the review of the next City Plan, which is expected to start in 2025.

“In addition, in 2014 Council engaged planning consultants to undertake a detailed assessment of residential land availability in the Redlands, which found that Redland has capacity to accommodate the number of dwellings required to house the projected population growth over the planning timeframe to 2041.

Deputy Premier Steven Miles wrote to Redland council last year directing it to update its 2011-2031 Housing Strategy by August this year but the council voted against the move.

Projected population of the 10 largest local government areas.

Mr Miles launched a task force last year after singling out Redland, the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast as having critical land supply shortages.

According to the 2020 Land Supply development monitoring report, 794,000 new homes would be needed in the southeast in the next 20 years with peak body the Urban Development Institute of Australia predicting Redland would need an extra 17,200 houses but only had 2.6 years’ worth of supply.

The report showed Redland would have a population increase of 36,000 by 2041 and Logan a massive 272,000 increase in people.

A Redland council spokesman said the state’s Land Supply and Development Monitoring Report found the city had sufficient residential land to meet expected needs and that the latest State Government report, released in December 2021, now showed that Redland City Council was meeting its land supply targets, with 4 years’ worth of approved supply in the pipeline.

“It is one of the few councils in southeast Queensland achieving its dwelling targets, in terms of supply and demand and housing mix, imposed by the SEQ Regional Plan,” the Redland council spokesman said.

“Council also has already progressed land-use and infrastructure planning for new communities at southwest Victoria Point and southern Redland Bay.”

Shadow Housing Minister Tim Mander said the blame “lay squarely at the feet of the state Labor government”.

“In the Redlands, the number of social housing bedrooms has increased by 60, or a measly 1.8 per cent across the last five years,” Mr Mander said.

“Yet, in the same five years, the number of people on the social housing waiting list has exploded by nearly 500 people to reach 1537.

“Sixty bedrooms for 1537 people. That’s Don Brown’s record on housing.”

Bahrs Scrub in Logan City, which has experienced unprecedented growth. PHOTO: JUDITH KERR

Logan City Council published the first part of its housing strategy two years ago.

It did not answer questions about the city’s housing crisis or planning for emergency accommodation.

Logan was criticised last week for failing to open up seven apartments left vacant for five years for flood-affected families.

However the council clarified the units were subject to sale to the Queensland Government’s Department of Communities, Housing and Digital Economy.

Tenants Queensland chief executive Penny Carr said the vacancy rate south of Brisbane was less than 1 per cent and was exacerbated by the flood ruining rental stock.

She also said the flood had affected families who owned their property but were now forced to look for temporary rental accommodation.

“Hotels, motels and quarantine facilities should be opened up for flood victims while there is no stock,” she said. “Let’s hope government steps it up and brings on the stock.”

Redland Bay real estate principal Jesse James said his rental management department was receiving 15 to 20 applications on average per property and his office only had two properties available this week.

“Even sales stock is hard to get but buyers are still coming in in droves,” he said.

“Lucky we can’t auction rental properties or there would be even more demand and less supply.”