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THE SDA HOUSING PODCAST
The SDA Housing Podcast is a leading voice in the Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) sector, delivering in-depth discussions, expert insights, and the latest updates related to housing solutions for people with disabilities. Through interviews with industry leaders, advocates, and lived-experience voices, we explore policy developments, innovative best practices, and real-world stories shaping the future of disability housing.
Listeners will gain valuable knowledge on emerging trends, sector challenges, and inspiring success stories, making this podcast an essential resource for investors, providers, advocates, and anyone passionate about inclusive housing.
Debbie – General Manager, NDIS Property Australia:
With over 20 years of expertise in tourism, finance, and property, Debbie has played a pivotal role in transforming NDIS Property Australia from a two-person team to a 22-member powerhouse. Her leadership drives the successful marketing, sales, and development of SDA properties nationwide, working closely with builders, designers, lenders, and support providers to ensure high-quality, compliant housing solutions.
Minh – Founder, NDIS Property Australia:
A visionary in the SDA space, Minh is dedicated to accelerating the delivery of purpose-built disability housing across Australia. By fostering collaboration among stakeholders, investors, and NDIS participants, he champions choice, control, and dignity for people with disabilities, ensuring they have access to homes that truly meet their needs.
Together, Debbie and Minh are committed to ethical, sustainable, and impactful solutions in the SDA sector, bridging gaps and driving meaningful change.
Engaging with the SDA Community:
Each week, we feature guest speakers from across the sector, sharing their expertise, experiences, and contributions to social impact in SDA. From innovative housing designs to policy advocacy, our conversations highlight how we can collectively improve living options for NDIS participants.
As the SDA landscape evolves, we invite you—our listeners—to join us on the journey. Whether you're an investor, provider, advocate, builder, developer, parents of participants, or simply passionate about inclusive housing, this podcast equips you with the knowledge to make a difference in the lives of People with Disabilities (PWDs).
Share Your Story:
Have an SDA journey you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you!
📞 Call us: 1300 254 397
📧 Email us: podcast@ndis.property
🌐 Visit us: www.ndis.property
Join the conversation and help shape a more inclusive future in disability housing.
THE SDA HOUSING PODCAST
EPISODE 324 - Victorian Govt NDIS Group Homes
In this episode, Debbie welcomes back Kevin Chen from Paramount Disability Homes for a conversation about the status of the Victorian Government NDIS Housing Crisis.
This major crisis is unfolding in Victoria as state government subsidies for group home support workers which have already ended at the end of 2023, have leases for these properties set to expire on 31st December 2025. This impacts approximately 5,000 NDIS participants currently residing in 600 to 700 state government-owned group homes, many of which were grandfathered into the SDA system as 'Basic' level dwellings as early as 2016, lacking modern accessibility features (not meeting IL, FA, Robust, or HPS standards). These homes have operated since pre-NDIS times (before 2013), with residents often being in their 50s and 60s, having lived there for 20-30 years with the same support workers.
A significant hurdle is inadequate funding. Undertaking plan reviews for 5,000 people to get funding uplifted is a massive operational challenge, with no clear process or guarantee of success. There's a risk participants could be rejected or have their SDA funding removed entirely, especially if they are elderly, leaving them with even fewer housing options.
While there is an oversupply of new SDA properties in Melbourne's outer suburbs (northern, southeastern, and predominantly western), the affected participants, who have lived in inner and middle-ring areas for years, wish to remain in their current locations. Providers moving to outer areas risk losing many clients. Furthermore, support workers are reluctant to travel to these outer suburbs. The inner areas, where most group homes are situated, have a greater abundance of apartments than houses, limiting suitable housing options.
This geographical gap between where the housing is and where the demand is, particularly for houses over apartments, is a major barrier to relocating the thousands of displaced residents, as the NDIS is not expected to universally uplift funding for basic-funded participants anytime soon.
For investors with empty SDAs around Melbourne, more specifically, by taking on tenants with lower initial funding, investors can secure occupancy while helping residents, with the long-term potential of significantly higher rental income once the participant's SDA funding is successful.
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NDIS PROPERTY AUSTRALIA:
Our team conducts thorough research on Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) and provides appropriate technical advice through premium and strategy-based solutions. We also use complex feasibility calculation spreadsheets to help investors understand the expected annual income of an SDA dwelling, the timeline stages of construction of their property, as well as revealing the hidden costs. By staying up-to-date with the latest SDA data and pricing payments information, we help clients make better-informed decisions and achieve their investment goals.
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CONTACT:
Please feel free to call us on 1300 254 397 to talk to one of our friendly staff, otherwise, just pop on over to our website to find out more.
For any podcast related queries or suggestions, please contact our podcast team via podcast@ndis.property