Increasing numbers of people in Hepburn Shire are struggling to find homes at a price they can afford, prompting council to develop a strategy and action plan to improve affordable housing availability.
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The lack of affordable housing is impacting on local employers' ability to attract new staff, spending in businesses, enrolment in local schools and community connection.
At the same time, the recent Census shows there are 2008 unoccupied homes in Hepburn Shire and about 10 per cent of homes in the area are listed on short-stay accommodation sites.
Hepburn Shire mayor Cr Tim Drylie said the lack of affordable housing meant fewer people were able to make the shire their home.
"Our shire is a wonderful place to visit, but it is also a wonderful place to live," Cr Drylie said.
"This affects people on lower incomes but also those in key jobs that we need to support our services and local businesses like hospitality, tourism, farm workers, nurses and other carers."
Some businesses have been forced to buy or rent houses for their staff to be able to recruit new employees.
According to council, Hepburn Shire has at least 1000 homes listed for short-stay accommodation mostly around Daylesford and Hepburn Springs, an increase of 51 over the past three years.
Cr Drylie said council needed to strike a balance between the need for more affordable housing in the region and the need to welcome and accommodate tourists and visitors.
Hepburn Shire this week released an issues and options paper, calling on community feedback to help shape its Affordable Housing Strategy and Action Plan.
"We need to think about housing supply and when we've got so many vacant or under-utilised properties but having said that, we also need places for people to come and stay so it's a balance in terms of that sufficiency," he said.
The options paper also canvasses higher density development, land availability, zoning and other measures to increase affordable housing stocks.
"It's a combination approach, not a one size fits all," Cr Drylie said.
"Most factors that drive housing affordability and the availability of housing are outside the direct control of local government and sit with state and federal government and the private sector, However there are some things councils can do such as advocating on behalf of the community, using the planning system, creating incentives and bringing key partners together."
He acknowledged higher density housing in some areas could be controversial but might be needed if the current situation continues.
"One of the strategies to increase affordable housing is to have higher density two-storey apartment complexes to reduce the overall cost to people and often the fact is that it changes the amenity of the surrounding neighbourhood.
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"The community needs to make hard decisions about what our priorities are and if we really do want to accommodate people, and we are talking about disadvantaged people a lot of the time when talking about affordable housing, then as an equitable and socially-just community we need to consider how we include and facilitate affordable and appropriate housing."
Included in the issues and options paper are programs running in other areas.
Nearby Mount Alexander Shire is looking at a share housing program to increase use of existing house stock, encouraging people living alone in three bedroom houses to open up their homes to share, while Ararat Council is looking at offering some of its existing land stock to developers to create affordable housing.
Moyne Shire Council, which takes in the tourist town of Port Fairy, is writing to non-resident ratepayers asking them to consider making their properties available for long term rental to locals to help improve housing availability, while neighbouring Warrnambool is looking to introduce a $400 annual fee on properties used for short term accommodation and Bendigo trecently ook the first step toward changing the classification of Airbnb properties from residential to a higher rates category.
Council will hold an online webinar at 5pm on November 16. A survey is also open until December 4 and pop-up sessions will be held in coming weeks at Creswick, Glenlyon, Clunes, Trentham and Daylesford.
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