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Housing supply​

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Discover how we’re helping to boost housing supply and diversity in response to the city’s population growth.

New housing development. Street view with a road and modern house featuring screens and glass balustrades.

Brisbane's Sustainable Growth Strategy

Brisbane is a safe, vibrant, green and prosperous city valued for its friendly character and subtropical lifestyle.  

Our popularity and growth have created housing pressures. As the region continues to grow, housing choice will need to reflect our changing communities.

Brisbane's Sustainable Growth Strategy is Council's housing and homelessness strategy.

It outlines our initiatives to address the key challenges for our growing city:

  • keeping Brisbane affordable 
  • achieving sustainable development goals and protecting Brisbane’s rich biodiversity
  • managing sustained population growth and changes in established and emerging communities 
  • planning for housing in areas that maximises city-shaping infrastructure 
  • delivering infrastructure to meet future population growth
  • building new, well-designed housing that meets the needs of current and future communities, stage-of-life changes and people with specific needs
  • responding to housing needs during and after major events such as pandemics or floods
  • supporting our economy and enhancing our lifestyle.

Key priorities

The strategy addresses 4 key priorities.

Council facilitates the delivery of housing, associated infrastructure and supporting services that reflect the community’s values and expectations.

What are we already doing?

All residents should have equal access to safe, affordable, well-designed and conveniently located housing that matches their stage of life and circumstances.

What are we already doing?

  • Supporting community housing providers to deliver affordable housing development in the city.
  • Supporting multigenerational family households by enabling secondary dwellings (e.g. granny flats) to be constructed within residential areas.
  • Facilitating a wide range of homelessness support initiatives.
  • Supporting changes to body corporate legislation that will allow for the redevelopment of older residential accommodation.
  • Investigating housing opportunities for single occupant or couple households.
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Incentives for building rentals

Under the Brisbane Build-to-Rent Incentive Policy, Council will defer infrastructure charges for up to 5 years for new large-scale, multiple-dwelling developments. 

Until 1 October 2026, eligible developments in targeted zones can apply for a deferral.

New housing for our community should be focused in the most appropriate locations for access to transport, services, recreation and employment opportunities.

What are we already doing?

  • Coordinating land use and infrastructure planning to ensure developing areas are well serviced by road and stormwater infrastructure and have a high level of access to public and active transport, open space and community facilities.
  • Implementing new precinct planning in suburban and inner-city locations in consultation with communities to deliver localised outcomes, maximise existing transport and identify future potential infrastructure that supports the community.
  • Delivering suburban upgrades to create vibrant centres for local communities.

New residential buildings should be designed to suit Brisbane’s climate and lifestyle.

What are we already doing?

  • Supporting quality design that considers Brisbane’s subtropical climate, biodiversity and landscape through our design guides.
  • Encouraging generous balconies and communal areas in new residential buildings to support outdoor living through City Plan provisions. 
  • Introducing sustainable design outcomes for new homes to support outdoor living, retain trees and greenery and contribute to residents’ privacy.
  • Embedding subtropical design principles into City Plan to ensure new residential buildings are appropriately designed to suit our climate and lifestyle.

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Housing and homelessness support

Planning for Brisbane

Support for community

Getting more homes built sooner

As Brisbane's population continues to grow, urgent action is needed to help deliver more housing.

Council is focused on ensuring residents have opportunities to live in a home and location that is right for them, while still enjoying our enviable subtropical lifestyle.

Brisbane's Housing Supply Action Plan 

The Brisbane Housing Supply Action Plan takes targeted actions to address short-to-medium-term housing supply. 

It includes a series of actions to make it easier for industry to build more housing sooner and address housing supply challenges. 

The plan helps to reduce construction costs and encourage faster development through:

  • reduced infrastructure charges
  • new planning strategies
  • fast-tracked assessment
  • advocacy for Queensland and Australian planning reforms and support for more housing.

Read the plan to learn more.

Brisbane Housing Supply Incentive Policy

As part of the Brisbane Housing Supply Action Plan, reduced infrastructure charges are available for developments of studio, one-bedroom and 2-bedroom multiple dwellings in identified, well-serviced growth areas.

Download the Brisbane Housing Supply Incentive Policy to learn more.

To be eligible, your development must be:

  • approved for a material change of use for a multiple dwelling use by 30 June 2025 (does not apply to change representations, a change application, an extension application or an appeal) 

  • a dwelling with no more than 2 bedrooms  

  • located within City Plan's:
    • High density residential zone
    • Principal centre zone
    • Major centre zone
    • Mixed use zone, or 
    • any zone if delivered by a community housing provider

  • proposed but not yet under construction. 

For eligible developments, Council will enter into an Infrastructure Agreement under the Planning Act 2016 to reduce the infrastructure charges payable. 

The infrastructure charges reduction will be applied:

  • to the eligible component of development 

  • at the time of payment 

  • before the application of any demand credits, discounts or infrastructure offsets.

For more information, read the Brisbane Housing Supply Incentive Policy. 

Complete the Infrastructure Agreement Request Notice to apply for a reduction. Include supporting information to demonstrate your eligibility.

Email your completed form to DS_Infrastructure@brisbane.qld.gov.au.

Brisbane Build-to-Rent Incentive Policy

The Brisbane Build-to-Rent Incentive Policy makes large-scale multiple dwelling developments in approved locations eligible for deferred infrastructure charges. 

Under the policy, a build-to-rent development is a new, purpose-built, large-scale, multiple-dwelling residential development. All dwellings in the building are retained in one ownership for the purpose of being managed for a minimum of 10 years as long-term rental housing.

Download the Brisbane Build-to-Rent Incentive Policy to learn more.

To be eligible, your development must be:

  • approved for a material change of use for a multiple dwelling use by 30 June 2025 
  • located within City Plan's 
    • High density residential zone
    • Principal centre zone
    • Major centre zone
    • Mixed use zone  
  • used entirely for build-to-rent purposes (applies to the residential component of the building). 

For eligible developments, Council will enter into an Infrastructure Agreement under the Planning Act 2016 to defer the payment of the infrastructure charges for up to 5 years for the build-to-rent component of the development. 

The deferred charges must be paid in annual instalments once the eligible development is in use.

For more information, read the Brisbane Build-to-Rent Incentive Policy.

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Note

Our special assessment unit streamlines assessment of priority development applications that support Council's housing initiatives.

For advice on your development application, request Council assistance. 

Complete an Infrastructure Agreement Request Notice to apply for a deferral. Include supporting information to demonstrate your eligibility.

Email your completed form to DS_Infrastructure@brisbane.qld.gov.au.

More information

Register to receive updates on housing strategies, and planning and development in Brisbane.

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You can also:

Strategic Planning (Brisbane's Sustainable Growth Strategy)
Brisbane City Council
GPO Box 1434
Brisbane Qld 4001

Frequently asked questions

Under the Brisbane Housing Supply Incentive Policy, Council will reduce infrastructure charges and offer specialist fast-tracked assessment for eligible developments in targeted areas. 

The aim of the policy is to help get more homes built sooner by reducing the cost of constructing the most needed developments. Find out more about Council’s strategies and incentives to boost housing supply.