Tasmanians are being encouraged to come forward and apply for the state government's $10,000 ancillary dwelling grants program.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Under the program, homeowners can put the $10,000 toward the construction of an ancillary dwelling - colloquially known as a granny flat - on their existing property.
Half of the $10,000 will be made available during construction and the other half will be handed out after the new dwelling has been leased to a renter.
The staggered payment is to help ensure any new builds are utilised as rentals - which they must remain as for at least two years - rather than used as short-term holiday stays.
About 150 grants have already been approved, but there is room in the $2.5 million budget for another 100 more.
One of the program's early adopters was Ravenswood resident Jason Zadow, who is now in the final stages of constructing his own granny-flat style abode at the back of his property.
"I'm in the industry so I'm aware of what an ancillary dwelling can do to a property. When that grant came along it was a no-brainer for us," he said.
Mr Zadow noted that the grant had helped fund around one seventh of the total building costs.
Mr Zadow is no stranger to the rise of ancillary dwellings as a popular option for homeowners in recent years, as he runs a low-cost house construction company called Tiny Homes Tasmania. The company's quick-fit shipping-container abodes have proved popular with local residents.
"Shipping container homes do fall within ancillary dwellings so you can put one in your backyard. We have two under construction right now and another three going through planning," he said.
READ MORE: George Town man freed from Risdon Prison
According to State Development, Construction and Housing Minister Michael Ferguson, the initiative is intended to boost housing supply in the state.
"We'd love to see the additional 100 places taken up because I want to see a fully-delivered 250 extra homes based on this very modest taxpayer investment of $2.5 million," he said.
However, Tasmanian Labour's Ella Haddad has criticised the program as a "drop in the ocean" fix for the state's ongoing housing supply issues.
Applications for grants are open until the end of June 2022.
What do you think? Send us a letter to the editor: