Over 50,000 homes are needed for people with disabilities across Australia. Right now, we’ve built dozens of specialist homes, yet in some regions, vacancy rates for SDA sit between 30–50%. That gap, between urgent need and empty purpose-built houses, is both heartbreaking and avoidable. I started Ethical Property Investments because I believed investors could earn returns while solving a real social problem. Today the market is sending us a powerful message: good intentions alone won’t fix structural mismatch.
I’ve raised capital, invested nearly $10 million alongside family and friends, and helped deliver more than 45 houses in Victoria. I’ve seen firsthand what works and what doesn’t. SDA should be a triple win, tenants get dignity and choice, investors get yield, communities become stronger, but oversupply in the wrong places has turned many projects into lost opportunities. This article explains why that happened, what it costs us, and what investors can do differently.
What SDA is and why it mattered to me
SDA is purpose-built housing for NDIS participants with high support needs. It includes accessible bathrooms, reinforced fixtures, technology for independence, and layouts that support 24-hour care where needed. The NDIS funds the accommodation component through participant plans. When done properly, SDA provides stable, long-term income and, more importantly, a real home for someone who needs it.
I was drawn to this work after a week with Richard Branson taught me that giving can be a business strategy. That ethos grew into Empowered Liveability and our partnerships with GenU and the Mental Health Foundation. We design homes with tenants, not for them. That’s a non-negotiable.
There are three simple reasons for the oversupply problem.
- First, everyone rushed in. Developers and investors saw yields and built without granular demand mapping. Hotspot thinking, build where others are building, replaced asking where participants actually lived and wanted to stay.
- Second, coordination failed. NDIS planners, disability providers and developers did not align. A house can meet building code but still be unusable because it’s miles from family, services, or transport.
- Third, product mismatch. Investors often spec properties for the “average” tenant. SDA categories vary, Improved Liveability, Fully Accessible, High Physical Support, and a design mismatch means longer vacancy.
The consequences are plain. Empty houses cost investors maintenance, interest and reputational damage. They also blunt the NDIS’s promise: purpose-built homes exist, but people who need them remain stuck in nursing homes or with families.
Why investors should care, beyond yield
If you only look at yield, you miss the bigger risk. Vacancy kills returns. Poorly located homes become illiquid assets. Worse, investing without tenant focus erodes trust. My biggest early risk, raising $10 million from friends and family, taught me that investors want both returns and outcomes. They don’t want morally fraught assets. Ethical investment must be ethical in practice, not just in marketing.
There is also an opportunity cost. Every empty room is an avoided outcome: independence denied, family stress prolonged, government costs extended. For investors who truly want impact, that’s unacceptable.
Five practical steps that actually work
- Start with data, not hype.
Do the regional homework. Look at NDIS participant profiles, local planner activity and existing SDA stock. In our projects we map participant locations, support provider capacity and public transport links before we buy land. - Design with tenants.
Bring support coordinators and occupational therapists into the design brief. We consult tenants. We design ensuite rooms and shared spaces that promote independence. That approach reduces churn and improves outcomes. - Build partnerships early.
We partner with GenU and Empowered Liveability to lock in support services before completion. A tenancy is not just bricks, it’s also the team that makes daily life possible. - Diversify the asset model.
Hybrid homes, built for SDA but convertible to co-living or regular rentals, protect investors if demand in a postcode softens. This is how we reduce downside while keeping the social mission. - Use specialist property managers.
SDA requires a different approach to tenanting and maintenance. Specialist managers actively match participants and maintain the standard that keeps homes tenanted.
Where policy and practice need to change
We need better participant data and clearer regional planning. The NDIS and state planners must share more precise signals with the market. Pricing reviews and regulatory reform are coming; investors who pay attention to those shifts will find opportunity, not chaos.
There’s also a role for incentives. Governments can prioritise grants or planning fast-tracks for projects that demonstrate real tenancy pathways, not speculative builds. Ethical investors should lobby for transparent planning rules that stop hot-spot development bubbles.
A short example: turning vacancy into homes
In Wyndham Vale we had a house ready with no immediate tenant. Instead of discounting rates, we engaged local providers, adjusted the internal layout slightly and matched three adults with similar needs and support teams. The house filled. That’s not luck, that’s planning, relationships and the willingness to design around people.
A call to sensible action
SDA remains one of the most powerful ways to marry returns with impact. But success is not automatic. It requires discipline: research, tenant-led design, partnerships and flexible assets. Investors who skip those steps will see vacancy, low returns and reputational risk. Investors who do them well will secure sustainable income while changing lives.
At Ethical Property Investments, we’ve proven a model that works: participant consultation, strong provider partnerships, and measurement of outcomes. We want more mainstream investors to step in, but step in responsibly.
If Australia is to meet the need of 50,000 homes, we must be smarter. Building more houses in the wrong places won’t solve the crisis. Building fewer houses, but the right houses, in the right places, with the right supports, will. Do good. Make money. Build homes that matter.
Top 5 actions to avoid SDA pitfalls
- Verify local participant demand before you commit.
- Design with tenants and support teams.
- Pre-arrange support providers and tenancy pathways.
- Use convertible/hybrid designs to protect downside.
- Work with specialist SDA managers and stay on top of policy changes.