Hundreds more homes identified for voluntary home buy-back

More homeowners in flood-prone areas are set to receive a voluntary home buy-back offer, with the additional purchase of another 300 homes under the Resilient Homes Fund.

The jointly funded initiative delivered through Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA), was established in May 2022 following the catastrophic 2021-22 rainfall and flooding events.

To date, 370 offers have been accepted for voluntary home buy-back, out of the 473 offers which have been presented to homeowners.

There have been 238 sale contracts already settled, allowing the impacted residents to move on with their lives without the risk of future flooding.

A total of 491 valuation inspections have been undertaken so it is expected that the number of offers accepted will grow steadily over the coming months.

As home assessments progressed and flood and risk data was analysed, it became apparent that there were more homes that should be candidates for buy-back.

The purchase of more homes will be very welcome news for homeowners who want to start again in a safer location and whose land should never be built on again.

While applications for the Voluntary Home Buy-Back program are closed, impacted homeowners can still apply for the Resilient Retrofit or Home Raising programs until 30 July 2023, as part of the Resilient Homes Fund.

The Department of Energy and Public Works is managing the delivery of the retrofitting and house-raising components of the Resilient Homes Fund, while the Queensland Reconstruction Authority is managing the voluntary home buy-back program together with local government.

For more on the Resilient Homes Fund, visit www.qld.gov.au/resilienthomes