Image: Nick Champion/Facebook
South Australia is trialling a new kind of suburban home designed to fill the gap between a detached house and a large apartment block, with the State Government pushing to bring more affordable, low-rise housing into established Adelaide suburbs.
The “missing middle” housing model includes medium-density home types such as duplexes, manor homes and smaller apartment-style buildings. The idea is to create more housing choice in suburbs where people already live, work and have community connections, without relying only on high-rise apartment towers or new housing estates on the city’s outer fringe.
The SA Housing Trust is now piloting a manor house development in Blair Athol, with a new complex approved by the State Commission Assessment Panel last week. The homes will be made available for private ownership through the Malinauskas Government’s Rent to Own scheme.
From the street, the new developments are designed to look more like townhouses or larger manor homes. Inside, however, they will function as thoughtfully designed apartments in a “one up, one down” layout, creating low-density two-bedroom homes that can better blend into existing streetscapes.
The concept is being pitched as an alternative for first homebuyers, downsizers and South Australians who want a more modestly priced home but may not want to live in a high-rise apartment or move further away from the suburbs they know.
Each home will include off-street parking for residents and visitors, aiming to reduce the congestion that can come from more cars parked on suburban streets. The design also removes the need for central staircases, instead giving upstairs apartments direct staircase access.
Upper-level homes will feature generous balconies, while ground-floor homes will include private courtyards. Ground-floor homes will also be accessible, and the development will include shared on-site greenspace and a community garden to encourage outdoor activity and connection between residents.
Minister for Housing and Urban Development Nick Champion said the model could give South Australians another pathway into affordable housing.
“Missing Middle homes will give South Australians a genuine new option to live affordably in the suburbs they know and love,” he said.
“This is another example of our government refusing to put something in the ‘too hard basket’ and instead, innovating to increase housing supply and build more homes, faster.”
The initiative is being developed with industry, including the Housing Industry Association, Master Builders Association, private sector builders and the State Planning Commission. The State Government says the designs could later be used more widely by private builders, community housing providers and government agencies.
“We want South Australian builders to look at these homes and see the opportunity to build more just like them,” Minister Champion said.
