Home Ownership Opportunity Port
Overview
The Home Ownership Opportunity Port (HOOP) supports families to access a mobile loan through the Home Ownership on Indigenous Land (HOIL) subsidy.
For many Australians, the family home is their single largest wealth asset. Now, for the first time, Indigenous families living in remote communities can also create personal wealth through home equity via normal property market norms. This will drive property investment in these communities and enable families to maintain a home base whilst gaining meaningful employment outside their communities.
Land tenure remains the biggest barrier to these families owning their own homes. HOOP has tackled this by having the HOIL subsidy mobile for indigenous individuals and families wanting to ‘orbit’ – the process of people leaving their community for a period of time for employment or study before returning to their community.
Home ownership is a key factor in promotion of ‘orbits’, having the primary destination for people leaving communities being Cairns, where there are solid employment opportunities in the real economy.
Families are assisted by Home Ownership Enablers to access the Indigenous Business Australia’s HOIL subsidy. The subsidy includes an upfront discount; lower interest rates and co-payment options.
Families who sign up to the Home Ownership Opportunity Port are required to do a plan through the MPower money management program, that assists families to meet their basic needs and build wealth. Through an MPower Conversation, coaches work with families to map out where they are in their lives, where they want to be and what they need to do to get there. Participants set goals and build family budgets and receive follow up coaching sessions to help them stay on track.
HOOP is currently under development with key welfare reform partners. HOOP will be open to families within the four Welfare Reform communities who are interested in buying their own home and take up full time employment outside the community.
Objective
Individuals and families from remote areas ‘orbit’ from their home communities to take up employment and are able to purchase their own homes in locations of their choice
Funding and partnerships
Home Ownership Opportunity Port is a key component of the Housing Stream of the Cape York Welfare Reform Agenda – a tripartite partnership between the Australian and Queensland Governments, and Cape York Partnerships. Welfare Reform currently operates in the communities of Aurukun, Coen, Hope Vale and Mossman Gorge.
Indigenous Business Australia is a key partner in this project, allowing HOIL loans to be accessible on general land tenure for local Indigenous people from Cape York to allow them to move to Cairns and own their own home while working away from their local community.
Alignment with the Cape York Agenda
CYP’s role is to implement the social, economic and cultural development goals of the Cape York Agenda, developed by indigenous leaders from Cape York. CYP has developed a Third Way to enable Aboriginal families to move from passive welfare dependency to real economic participation. This Third Way shifts from passive service delivery to an approach that combines personal and family responsibility, capabilities development and tangible opportunity products to enable individual and family pathways to a better life.
Home ownership will ensure that families are able to facilitate wealth creation and participate in the real economy like other Australians.
The case for reform
Many Cape York families live in overcrowded houses that are in desperate need of repair. Often, basics like food storage, cooking, shower and toilet facilities are not functional1. Overcrowding, poor construction and maintenance and the anti-social behaviours of some, all negatively impact on the health and well being of children and others who occupy the household2. The situation is at crisis point and requires immediate action.
The land tenure systems in the region hinder the establishment of a private property market so home ownership or private rentals are not possible. This effectively means public housing is the only option.
Research indicates that Indigenous families, like most Australians, aspire to live in safe, healthy and attractive homes they can take pride in. They want opportunities to gain employment, own their own home, and want to make their homes more liveable.
There is considerable international research to indicate the public health benefits for families and communities who participate in home beautification and ownership programs.
Cape York Partnerships (CYP) is working with the Cape York Institute, Cape York Land Council, Balkanu Cape York Development Corporation and Governments to resolve the significant and complex structural barriers to home ownership. CYP has developed a suite of projects that support each other to achieve the goal of home ownership in Cape York.
HOOP is just one ‘piece of the jigsaw’ along with Pride of Place3, House to Home4, and Bush Owner Builder5. They access HOOP through their local O-Hub6 and are supported by Bayan7.
1. Australian Government Productivity Commission, Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage Report, Remote Areas Key Indicators, Canberra, 2009
2. Garner, G 2006, The ecology and inter-relationship of between housing and health outcomes. Retrieved August 10, 2007, from http://eprints.qut.edu.au/archive/00007216/01/7216.pdf
3. Pride of Place supports families to invest effort and money in small-scale renovation projects that enhance their backyards.
4. House to Home supports families to transform their run down public houses into clean, safe and secure homes that they can purchase.
5. Bush Owner Builder supports families to build their own simple climate-conscious bush homes on their traditional lands.
6.O-Hubs are purpose built community centres staffed by a team of professionals that include local people, who offer individuals and families access to a range of opportunity products. These products are designed to support personal responsibility and increase participation in education, employment, financial management, housing and other endeavours.
7. Bayan is a financial case management platform supporting aspiring home owners transition to home ownership.