The policy sets out how Housing SA manages situations where customers own or partly own residential property.
The policy applies to:
- people registering their interest in public or Aboriginal housing in line with the Eligibility for housing policy
- tenants and other occupants living in public or Aboriginal housing
- people applying for help paying bond and rent in line with the Private Rental Assistance Program policy.
Owning or partly owning residential property may affect customers’ eligibility for Housing SA services.
Residential property
Housing SA won’t offer public or Aboriginal housing to customers who own or partly own residential property, except if they have exceptional circumstances in line with the Eligibility for housing policy.
People are considered to own or partly own residential property if either of the below apply:
- they’re recorded on, or hold the title of, a residential property, for example Torrens, strata, community or moiety title
- they have a valid form of lease or agreement for a dwelling sited on a title owned by someone else, for example a cabin sited on Crown land, a transportable home sited in a caravan park.
None of the below are considered to be residential property:
- motor homes or caravans
- vacant land
- a dwelling that’s uninhabitable
- property with a commercial use only, for example shop or office
- land zoned for primary production that doesn’t have a habitable dwelling.
Tenants and other occupants who own or partly own residential property
Tenants may be in breach of their lease agreement, also known as the Conditions of Tenancy, if they or another occupant in their household owns or partly owns residential property.
If a tenant or other occupant owns or partly owns residential property, Housing SA may:
- end the tenancy in line with the Ending a public housing tenancy policy
- ask them to dispose of their ownership of the property at any time, for example selling it, having their name removed from the title
- charge market rent in line with the Rent policy
- offer a shorter term lease agreement in line with the Probationary and fixed term lease agreements policy, for example while they dispose of their ownership of the property
- regularly review the tenant’s eligibility for public or Aboriginal housing.
Related information
Controlling documents
This policy is based on and complies with:
Related policies and other documents
- Conditions of tenancy
- Eligibility for housing policy
- Private Rental Assistance Program policy
- Ending a public housing tenancy policy
- Rent policy
- Probationary and fixed term lease agreements policy
Date this policy applies from
31 July 2023
Version number
3
The online version of the policy is the approved and current version. There’s no guarantee any printed copies are current.