The state has ramped up its $1 billion guarantee, targeting stalled affordable and small‑scale housing projects.
The NSW state government has widened the reach of its $1 billion Pre-sale Finance Guarantee program, promising deeper backing for affordable housing and smaller residential projects.
Launched in September 2025, the guarantee scheme uses the state’s balance sheet to underwrite off‑the‑plan sales, so developers can meet presale hurdles and lock in construction funding.
The government said the program had already helped accelerate more than 600 homes and inspired similar schemes in South Australia and Western Australia.
Guided by feedback from proponents, financiers, and community housing providers, the state announced that the program would be expanded to support up to 100 per cent of the affordable housing dwellings in a project, capped at $30 million per development, where those homes are delivered by not‑for‑profit community housing providers.
Up to $80 million of guarantee capacity will also be ring‑fenced for community housing projects at any one time.
To capture more modest builds, the government is also scrapping the existing $5 million minimum project size and replacing it with a simpler requirement that eligible projects contain at least four homes.
On top of that, support for smaller schemes delivering fewer than 20 dwellings will be lifted, with the guarantee able to cover up to 75 per cent of homes in those projects, again capped at $30 million per project.
NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey framed the expansion as a way of backing in private capital at a time when higher interest rates and build costs were stalling projects.
“The Pre-sale Finance Guarantee shows how this Government is using its balance sheet to reduce risk and unlock private investment, enabling new homes to move from design to construction faster,” Mookhey said.
“This landmark reform allows us to deliver homes for working families at a lower cost to taxpayers, while also maintaining strong financial discipline.”
Industry welcomes focus on finance constraints
Access to debt has emerged as one of the biggest choke points in the current housing pipeline, particularly for smaller and affordable projects, where margins are tight and presales are harder to secure.
Property Council NSW executive director Katie Stevenson said the government’s announcement showed that it understood that finance, as opposed to planning approvals, was often the primary roadblock.
“This is exactly the kind of practical intervention we need right now – focused on getting projects out of the ground, not just approved,” Stevenson said.
“It builds on a model the Property Council has worked closely with government to develop following calls for such a scheme ahead of last year’s NSW Budget, so it’s great to see it being expanded.”
For Stevenson, the key benefit is the way the expanded guarantee can bring forward developments that are otherwise ready to start.
“The expansion of the Pre‑Sale Finance Guarantee will help unlock projects that are ready to go but have been held back by financing constraints,” she said.
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