Population boost bound for picturesque historic SA river town
A quaint Mid Murray town is set for a new housing development complete with pickleball courts – while the Premier announces the state’s Rent To Buy scheme is spreading across the suburbs.
New plans are being assessed by the Mid Murray Council that could see a new retirement community with 154 new homes built in an historic town with a population of around 6,500 people.
Developer Macwoolman 2 Pty Ltd has submitted an application to build the new community in Mannum with a clubhouse, an outdoor lap pool and gym, a dog park and pickleball courts.
The $25 million development would be accessible via North Terrace in Mannum and would include single-storey detached dwellings situated on 46,314 square metres.
Asked why Mannum was chosen for the development, local developer Trinity McNamara said it “already has the lifestyle, community and character people are looking for”.
McNamara expected Mannum to see further growth in the future, saying “we’re seeing growing interest in regional lifestyle locations that still offer everyday convenience”.
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He said the development would appeal to downsizers, with home designs and pricing still to be finalised.
The development application will be assessed by the Mid Murray Council assessment panel and manager, with public consultation ending on August 13.
Located on the traditional lands of Narraltie Aboriginal people, the historic town of Mannum dates back to 1854, and according to the 2021 census, it had a population of 6594 people.
A Mid Murray Council spokesperson said she was unable to comment on the application given it is currently undergoing assessment.
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Rent To Own scheme expanded
It comes as Premier Peter Malinauskas and Housing and Urban Development Minister Nick Champion today announced the expansion of the Rent To Own housing scheme.
The Housing Trust scheme allows tenants to pay 75 per cent market rent for two years while they save to buy the government-built house at a price locked in when they sign the lease.
According to the state government, the Rent To Own program would be expanded to 326 new homes across 38 suburbs, with plans to create 2000 Rent To Own homes over the next eight years as part of a $1.3 billion election commitment.
“Our innovative Rent To Own scheme will give thousands more South Australians a genuine way off the rental roundabout and into home ownership,” Premier Malinauskas said.
“The Rent To Own scheme sees the South Australian government underwrite and deliver brand-new homes for South Australians who have been trapped in the rental market, people who are long-term renters who have not been given the opportunity during really tough market conditions to be able to afford a deposit to be able to buy their home.”
Rent To Own beneficiary Margherita Buseli said that she became an Australian citizen last year, “and since then, my dream was to own a house because I’ve been renting here”.
“When I found out about this program, I thought there might be my good chance, being by myself with a child, one income … so, I took a chance, and I got the house,” she said.
The Rent To Own scheme was launched in May last year, covering 125 homes located across nine suburbs in metropolitan Adelaide, with about 50 of the initial applicants being first homebuyers.
“The Rent To Own program is about putting the right people in the right homes and one of the things … we’ve been most concerned about is a tight rental market trapping people in an endless cycle of renting, being unable to save a sufficient deposit, being unable to get into a rising housing market and thus being locked out,” Minister Champion said.
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