One-bedroom homes in Wagga in short supply, with 10 times as many single person households as one-bedroom homes

Data from the 2021 Census reveals there is a significant shortage of local housing with one or fewer bedrooms.

On the night of the 2021 Census, Wagga had just 599 single bedroom dwellings, and 6859 single or lone person households.

The city's real estate agents have also noticed that as rental prices have continued to rise, the demand for single-bedroom houses has grown - even among couples.

This suggests that while developments in the north continue to contribute to Wagga's abundance of family sized homes, it will do little to reduce pressure on the lower end of the property market for either renters or buyers.

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With the Census also suggesting a doubling of locals experiencing homelessness between 2016 and 2021, these numbers suggest a mismatch between existing supply and demand that will continue as long as the primary development sites are family homes in the north.

Wagga councillor Richard Foley says the council is in talks with developers about significant land releases in the local area, that could allow for the creation of thousands of new affordable homes.

"I think basically successive governments have dropped the ball on social housing - that's self-evident," Cr Foley said.

"Land prices are ridiculous in this city.

"We've got 5000 blocks that are going to be released, and potentially another 7000 coming up."

Predictions by Committee 4 Wagga suggest the local area will need as many as 1714 new homes by 2026 - a goal unlikely to be met at the current rate new developments are being approved.

Cr Foley will also be advocating for a local housing trust in the form of 1000 local homes owned by ratepayers that would be managed by the council. He suggested this could be funded by a "special rate variation".

"We can't rely on state and federal governments to do all the heavy lifting. At the local level, we could fund ourselves into a prosperous position," he said.

"We've already factored in that a rate rise is inevitable, so why just pour it down the bucket of an endless bureaucratic system?

"In this way, you'd build 1000 houses in three years, then have money coming in for roads, footpaths - this way, we know it's going towards something worthwhile where there's a return for the community."

Cr Foley will also be discussing the possibility of 3D printed homes and tiny home villages with council to address the specific needs of low income residents, and to "get things moving" on addressing the current shortfall as quickly as possible.

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