In case you missed it, NSW is facing a housing crisis. According to an analysis by Finder, the minimum household income needed to buy a house in Australia is $171,223 a year, rents across Sydney have reached all-time highs, and our housing supply isn't keeping up with population growth – with NSW falling behind on its aim to build 45,200 new homes ever year. In short, things are pretty dire on the housing front. All that being said, potential solutions are being worked through, and we’ve come across one sitting on the site of a former church in Marrickville, in Sydney’s Inner West. A bunch of lucky people have recently found new homes in a block of stylish, sustainably-built apartments – and they're paying 20 per cent less than the average rent in the area. Intrigued?
This medium-density apartment block is the first Sydney project from not-for-profit housing developer Nightingale, who've been working on similar housing projects in Melbourne since 2016. For their first Sydney project, they teamed up with Sydney based not-for-profit Fresh Hope Communities to meet the needs of our city's lower-income families – offering super-affordable compact apartments known as "micro apartments", and it looks like this type of housing model could be a peek at Sydney's future.
Home to 54 studio-style apartments, Nightingale Marrickville is embracing a new approach to medium-density housing – the building prioritises social space and connected, community-based living. So while people live in small spaces, they have access to larger community spaces (including shared kitchens and a rooftop garden).
Since 2016, Nightingale has been responsible for the creation of 400 medium-density housing projects down south, and there are more in the works. And while most Nightingale projects have been designed for people to buy their own apartment within the complex, this Marrickville block has been purpose-built for renters.
The development has been made possible thanks to a 99-year lease on a piece of land that previously housed a church. The land is owned by Fresh Hope Communities (the welfare arm and Public Benevolent Institution entity of churches of Christ in NSW and ACT). Fresh Hope identified the social good that affordable urban housing can provide to Sydney’s lower-income communities, and put forward the land.
Ranging in size from 22 to 31 square metres, the Marrickville "micro apartments" are simple and compact. Each individual apartment includes a private bathroom, and a small ergonomically-designed kitchen space. But with shared spaces including a terrace garden, expansive dining spaces, bicycle storage and shared laundries – and rent that’s 80 per cent of the market rate (rents range from $395 to $440 per week) – we reckon it’s a small price to pay. Plus, size isn't everything, and these apartments are strikingly designed.
The Nightingale Marrickville micro apartments are available via a ballot system, open to tenants who meet certain criteria (including single parents, women aged 55 and above, and low-income families). You can learn more over here.
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