DHA response
Provisioning schedule
DHA responds to the DHF with a draft provisioning schedule that takes account of supply-side factors such as vacancy rates, lease-ends, land-supply, availability of capital and the state of private rental markets. Following negotiation, DHA is contracted to supply through an approved provisioning schedule. DHA generally aims to meet 85% of the Defence requirement with the balance satisfied by private rentals where members receive their housing entitlement as a Rent Allowance. For 2011–12, based on the forecast notified in 2010–11, Defence approved a program under which DHA would supply 17,293 dwellings that, after allowing for vacancies, would accommodate 15,948 Defence families. A further 3,204 families were expected to be accommodated in the private rental market.
Capital program
The capital program sets out how DHA will meet its obligations to Defence as agreed in the provisioning schedule. It takes account of expiring leases, lease extensions and renewals, direct leasing outcomes, the purchase of new dwellings and DHA’s land acquisition and house construction program. The result is a large development, construction, acquisition and disposal program that must be approved by the DHA Board in the annual Corporate Plan. A short description of major projects in the 2011–12 capital program is at the end of this chapter.
In its 2011–12 capital program, DHA constructed or purchased 704 new dwellings for Members With Dependants at a cost of $335 million. DHA direct leased 147 properties, wrote new leases on 632 existing properties (where leases and options had expired) and extended 407 leases by agreement before lease expiry. After taking account of expired leases and the exercise of 1,073 options at DHA’s discretion, total stock for Defence members and their families was 17,471 or 101% of the 17,293 proposed in the provisioning schedule compared with the 95% target set by the Services Agreement.
Major land acquisitions
The acquisition of suitable cost-effective land for Defence housing is an ongoing priority.
A number of significant land purchases were reported in the previous Annual Report, including Rasmussen in Townsville, and Ermington and Lindfield in Sydney. In 2011–12, DHA added a major land parcel known as Warner Springs in the Brisbane suburb of Brendale. With a number of medium-sized purchases, DHA has sufficient well-located and competitively priced land on hand to sustain our construction program in most key locations for the medium-term.