accessibility

scope for new home buyers to enter the housing market (sometimes used to distinguish from 'housing stress' suffered by current owners)

ACOSS

Australian Council of Social Service

adaptable housing

housing for which the initial design of the building allows its structure to change

ADI

authorised deposit-taking institution: a bank or similar financial intermediary supervised by APRA

affordability index

compiled by the Commonwealth Bank and the Housing Industry Association, the index relates the monthly loan repayment on a typical 25 year mortgage loan large enough to pay 80 per cent of the cost of a house with the median price paid by first home buyers, to household income

AHURI

Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute; a network of Australian academics working on housing issues

APRA

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority; the supervisor of banks and other financial intermediaries

cooperative housing

a form of housing tenure where a  corporation or similar legal entity owns real estate, with each shareholder granted the right to occupy one housing unit

Commonwealth-State Housing Agreement

a joint Commonwealth-State arrangement which aims to assist both renters and purchasers obtain appropriate accommodation. The main identified funding priorities of the CSHA are public housing, community housing, crisis accommodation, Aboriginal rental housing, private rental support and home ownership support.

community housing

housing that is funded primarily by government but managed and sometimes owned by a non-profit community organisation

CPI

Consumer Price Index: Australian Bureau of Statistics measure of price change based on a set basket of goods and services

CSHA

Commonwealth State Housing Agreement

debt-servicing ratio

the cost of making interest and principal mortgage repayments as a proportion of gross household income

Demographia

a consultancy operated by road transport lobbyist Wendell Cox, which compiles a cross-country comparison of housing affordability

deposit gap

the amount by which the average house price exceeds the amount which a household on an average income can borrow

effective demand

the willingness and ability of potential buyers to pay for housing at existing market prices

FaHCSIA

Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs

FHOG

First Home Owners Grant: a Commonwealth scheme introduced in 2001 giving a lump-sum grant to first home buyers

Generation X

definitions vary but the term broadly refers to those born between the mid 1960s and the mid-to-late 1970s; the first offspring of the 'baby boomers'

greenfield sites

former farmland land on the periphery of towns and cities rezoned for urban development

HECS

Higher Education Contribution Scheme

HELP

the successor scheme to HECS

HOME

Household Organisation Management Expenses Advice Program: a pilot early intervention programme aimed at assisting families experiencing difficulties in maintaining tenancies or home ownership due to personal or financial circumstances.

Housing Affordability Fund

Commonwealth government scheme to commence on 1 July 2008 investing $500 million over five years in infrastructure linked to housing developments

housing stress

(low income) households that pay more than 30 per cent of their gross income in mortgage repayments; see 30/40

hypothecate

earmarking particular revenues for particular expenditure purposes. For example, in the US, spending on highways is financed by petrol excise

ICEHA

a Western Australian scheme for building homes to house workers for small business, under the Industrial and Commercial Employees' Housing Act 1973.

inclusionary zoning

whereby councils require developers to either contribute a percentage of new homes for low-cost housing or pay the equivalent in cash to build social housing elsewhere

infill sites

housing development within existing suburbs (as opposed to 'greenfield development')

mortgage stress

condition of households (in the bottom two income quintiles) that spend more than 30 per cent of their gross income on mortgage repayments

National Rental Affordability Scheme

Commonwealth government scheme funding tax incentives for investors to build up to 100,000 new affordable rental properties

negative gearing

taxation arrangement whereby when costs exceed investment income, the loss may be deducted from other taxable income

paraplanners

town planners with only a one-year diploma qualification, who could deal with routine low-value planning applications to free up more qualified planners for more important assessments

peppercorn lease

a lease where there is only a token rent payable

public housing

housing that is funded and provided by government directly

RBA

Reserve Bank of Australia; the central bank responsible for Australian monetary policy

rental stress

households that pay more than 30 per cent of their gross income in rental payments

SAAP

Supported Accommodation Assistance Programme: a joint Australian and State and Territory government programme providing accommodation and support services to people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless

securitisation

a financing technique that converts illiquid assets such as loans into marketable securities. The securities, which are backed by pools of assets, are then sold to institutional investors.

shared equity

a form of tenure where the resident and another (public, community or private) investor jointly own a property and share capital gains

social housing

an umbrella term to describe both public housing and community housing: subsidised housing, usually rental

UDIA

Urban Development Institute of Australia: a federation of five state associations that aims to promote the urban development industry

UDIA/Matsuik measure

classifies a housing market as unaffordable when a household spending 30 per cent of the average income in that region on repayments (with a 10 per cent deposit) could purchase less than 15 per cent of houses in that region

underlying demand

estimate of the number of new dwellings needed based on past growth in population, migration, living standards and the demolition of existing housing (as opposed to 'effective demand')

'30/40' rule

a measure of housing affordability which defines mortgage stress as those households in the lowest 40 per cent of the income distribution spending more than 30 per cent of their gross income on housing