HOUSING (AMENDMENT) ACT.
Act No. 27, 1024.
An Act to abolish the Housing Board ; to confer certain powers upon the Minister; to provide for the vesting of certain lands and securities in the Commissioners of the Government Savines Bank of New South Wales ; to confer on the said Commissioners certain powers of management and other powers ; to validate certain acts of the Housing Heard and the Minister; to amend the Housing Act, 1S)12, and certain other Acts ; and for purposes connected therewith. [Assented to, 17th
lative Council and Legislative Assembly of New South BE it enacted by flic King's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legis
Males in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows :—
1 . (1) This Act may be cited as the "Housing (Amendment) Act, 1924," and shall be construed with the Housing Act, 1912, as amended by the Housing (Extension) Act, 1919.
(2) The Housing Act, 1912, as so amended, is hereinafter referred to as the Principal Act.
2 . (1) The Housing Board is hereby dissolved, and
the powers, duties, and authorities of that board are
vested in the Minister.
(2) All lands which at the commencement of this Act are vested in the Housing Board or any Minister or corporation for the purposes of the Principal Act, and all closes in action and property of any description at the said commencement vested in the said Housing Board, Minister, or corporation, are hereby vested in the Minister, subject to all equities affecting the same.
(3) Except as provided in this Act, any rights or liabilities which could have been enforced by or against the Housing Board if this Act had not been passed shall, from and after the passing of this Act, be enforceable by or against the Minister.
(i) For the purposes of carrying out the above
provision and for purposes relating thereto the Principal
| Act is amended as set out in the Schedule attached | hereto. |
3. The Principal Act is further amended—
| (a) | by omitting from, section eight the words "The board may, in its discretion and subject to such conditions as it thinks tit. let on " and inserting in lieu thereof the words "(1) The Minister m a y " ; | | (b) | by inserting in the same section after the words | |
| " a n y other purpose" the words " t h a n | for |
| public use " ; |
(c)
| (c) | by omitting from the same section all words following the words " fifteen years " and insert ing the following subsections in lieu thereof :— |
(2) Where under this Act buildings are erected for public use, the Minister may lease them to any person for such term and upon such conditions as the Minister thinks fit.
(3) Every lease made under this section shall be made to take effect in possession not later than three months after its date.
(J) Every such lease shall reserve the best rent that can reasonably be obtained, regard being had to the circumstances of the case, but without any fine being taken or the rent made payable in advance except as to the last payment, which may be made payable on a day not more than one month before the expiration of the term.
(5) Every such lease shall contain a condition of re-entry on the rent not being paid within a time therein specified, not exceeding thirty days, and the covenants implied by section eighty-four of the Conveyancing Act, 1919, shall not be excluded therefrom.
| (d) | by omitting section ten and by inserting the following section in lieu thereof :— |
10. (1) The Minister may by public auction
or private contract sell any such land upon |
| such terms and conditions as he thinks fit to | any person for cash or upon terms : | |
Provided that—
| (a) | no one person may purchase more than one house and the land reason ably required therewith not exceeding in area one quarter of an acre or thereabouts; |
| (b) | the buyer shall satisfy the Minister that he is purchasing the land for his home or for the home of a member of his family ; |
(c)
| (c) | the maximum periods for the payment of purchase money by instalments shall be, for brick, concrete, or stone buildings, forty years, and for wooden buildings, twenty-five years: |
| (d) | the Minister shall not sell any land within the boundaries of the original Dacey Garden Suburb as defined by the Governor by proclamation in the Gazette. |
(2) The Minister may, with the previous approval of the Governor, sell by auction or by private treaty upon such terms and conditions as may be so approved any land or other pro perty vested in him by this Act without regard to paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of the proviso to subsection one of this section.
(3) Any purchase money received from the sale of land which has been appropriated under this Act shall be paid to the Housing Fund, and that Fund shall be charged with the value of the land as at the date of appropriation.
| (e) | by adding at the end of section twelve the following new subsections :— |
(2) The Minister may agree to cancel any
contract of sale made before or after the com
mencement of the Housing (Amendment) Act, |
| |
(3) The Minister may, if he thinks fit, pay to the person surrendering any land leased, granted, or dedicated, or to the purchaser upon the cancellation of a contract of sale, such sum by way of compensation for any visible and effective improvements on the land, but not exceeding the value of the improvements at the date of such surrender or cancellation, the cost of which has not been defrayed or advanced by the Housing Board or the Minister, as to the Minister may seem just.
(4)
(4) The Minister may also in his discretion repay to a purchaser upon the cancellation of: a contract of sale the whole or such proportion as he thinks fit of the purchase money of the land which has been paid by the purchaser under this Act.
| (f) | by omitting section thirteen and inserting in lieu thereof the following new sections : — |
13. (1) The Minister may—
| (a) | remit any part of the amount due under any contract of sale of land or land and buildings, or under any mortgage in respect of an advance made for the purchase, erection, or improvement of land or buildings ; |
| (b) | extend the period provided for pay ment of any purchase money or advance to a term not exceeding forty years where the subject matter of the purchase or advance is a brick, concrete, or stone building, or to a term not exceeding twenty- five years in the case of a wooden building. |
(2) The Minister may make and impose charges in connection with temporary services of water supply, lighting, or sewerage provided for houses built and sold or leased under this Act to recoup the expenses incurred in
| connection therewith or in connection with | guarantees given in respect thereof. |
| (3) The powers conferred by this section shall extend to contracts of sale made, mort gages given, and services provided prior to the commencement of the Housing (Amendment) Act, 1924. |
| 13A. (1) A purchaser from the board may within six months after the passing of the Housing (Amendment) Act, 1924, apply to the Minister for a revision of the amount of the purchase money to be paid by him. |
(2)
(2) The application may be made only on the grounds that by reason of the settle ment of the foundations due to faulty con struction or by reason of faulty workmanship the house has depreciated in value.
(3) The Minister shall refer the appli cation to the Government Architect for report, and if the Government Architect certifies that the settlement of the foundations is due to faulty construction, or that the workmanship in other respects has been faulty (upon which facts the certificate shall be final) the Minister shall refer the application to the Valuer- General, and shall remit such portion of the purchase money as the Valuer-General certifies to be fair and reasonable within the circumstances.
(4) If such purchaser be not satisfied to accept such remission he may within- one month after the offer thereof is served upon him elect to cancel the purchase, and upon so doing he shall be entitled to a refund of all moneys paid by him subject to the deduction of— '
| (a) | simple interest on the purchase price at six and a half per centum per annum; |
| (b) | all local government rates levied and not paid by the purchaser; and |
| (c) | all premiums for fire insurance of the |
| property not paid by the purchaser. | |
13n. The Minister may sell to any person by public auction or private contract and upon such terms and conditions as he may deem tit any land vested in him under this Act which has been acquired for the purpose of correcting encroachments.
| (g) | by inserting the following new sections next after section eighteen :— |
18A. (1) The Minister may arrange with
the Colonial Treasurer, the Minister for Lands,
the Public Trustee, or the Sydney Harbour |
Trust
Trust Commissioners, or any one or more of them, for the delegation of all or any of the powers and duties in relation to any land, and the buildings thereon, conferred and imposed on the Minister by this Act, and such Colonial Treasurer, Minister for Lands, Public Trustee, or Commissioners shall, as the deputy and attorney of the Minister, be authorised to exercise as and for the Minister the powers and duties so delegated as aforesaid.
(2) For so doing they shall be paid out of the Housing Fund such annual fee or commission as may be arranged.
18B. (1) The Governor may by proclamation withdraw from the Minister any lands vested in the Minister under this Act, and upon publi cation of such proclamation in the Gazette the lands therein specified shall be divested from the Minister and shall be deemed to be Crown lands reserved from every form of sale or lease, within the meaning of the Crown Lands Con solidation Act, 1913, until otherwise notified in the Gazette, subject as provided in the next following subsection.
(2) Upon any land so withdrawn being subsequently sold, leased, or otherwise disposed of—
(a) if the land is land which was resumed or
| purchased for housing purposes the |
| proceeds of the sale or lease or other disposition, less cost of collection and other necessary expenses, shall be paid to the Housing Fund ; |
| (b) | if the land is land which was Crown lands, and was appropriated for housing purposes, the proceeds of the sale, lease, or other disposition shall be applied as follows :— |
(i) The costs of sale and collection shall be first paid thereout.
(ii)
(ii) Of the balance the amount which represents the value of the land at the date of the appropriation shall be credited to such accounts as it would be credited to if the amount were received in the ordinary course of the alienation of Crown lands.
(iii) Of the balance remaining the Hous ing Fund shall be credited with the amount (if any) expended from that fund in respect of such appropria tion, and the amount (if any) so expended upon works for the improvement of the land together with the amount of interest paid or payable by the Housing Fund to the Consolidated Revenue Fund in respect of such expenditure under section fourteen of this Act.
(iv) If there is any balance remaining the surplus shall be divided equally, and one-half credited to the Housing Fund and the other half as in para graph (b) (ii) of this subsection.
| (h) | by adding to section thirty-two the following new subsection :— |
| in respect of any advance made under this Act, | failing to sign the prescribed form of mortgage (2) In the event of the applicant refusing or | |
whether before or after the passing of the Housing (Amendment) Act, 1924, when required in writing under the hand of the Minister so to do, the Minister may nominate in writing under his official seal an officer of the public service to execute in the name and on behalf of such applicant the prescribed form of mortgage, and the mortgage when so executed shall for all purposes be as valid and effectual as if executed by the applicant.
4 . The Principal Act is further amended by the addition after section forty of the following new Part :—
MISCELLANEOUS.
41. (1) The Governor may resume under the provisions of the Public Works Act, 1912, land upon which a dwelling-bouse has been erected by the Housing Board or the Minister for a purchaser, or by a person to whom an advance has been made under this Act for the erection of the dwelling-house, in the event of the purchaser or the person to whom the advance has been made declining or failing to execute the prescribed form of purchase agreement or mortgage, as the case may be, upon being required in writing so to do.
(2) The compensation in any such case shall be assessed only in respect of the interest of the purchaser or person to whom the advance was made, and any increased value to the land occasioned by the expenditure of the Housing Board or the Minister, or of the advance made by either, shall be disregarded.
42. Where any agreement for purchase is cancelled
or forfeited for non-fulfilment of the conditions
thereof, it shall be lawful for the Minister in lieu of
the damages provided for in the agreement to claim and recover for use and occupation an amount
equivalent to eight and one-half per centum per
annum of the improved capital value of the
property.
43. (1) Where a purchaser of a dwelling-house under this Act makes default in observing and performing any of the terms of the agreement, the Minister may cancel the agreement upon giving the purchaser at least one month's notice in writing of his intention so to do, and on or before the date of the expiration of such notice the purchaser shall give up possession of the said dwelling-house to the Minister.
(2)
(2) If the purchaser refuses so to do the Minister may issue his warrant to the Sheriff to deliver possession of the dwelling-house to the person appointed in such warrant to receive the same.
(3) Upon the receipt of such warrant the Sheriff shall deliver possession of such dwelling- house accordingly, and the costs accruing by reason of the issuing and execution of such warrant, to be settled by the Sheriff, shall be paid by the person refusing to give possession ; the amount of such costs, if not paid on demand, shall lie levied by distress, and upon application to any justice for that purpose he shall issue his warrant accordingly.
(1) The Minister may, in his discretion, repay to a purchaser whose agreement has been so cancelled the whole or such proportion as he thinks lit of the purchase money of the dwelling- house which has been paid by the purchaser under this Act.
14. (1) The Governor may by proclamation withdraw from the Minister the properties known as number eight Hickson-road, City of Sydney, and number two hundred and eleven Kent-street, City of Sydney, which were resumed for purposes of the Housing Act. 1912, by notifications published in the Gazette number fifty-five of fifteenth day of April, one thousand nine hundred and twenty-one. Upon publication of such proclamation in the
| from the Minister. | Gazette the lands therein specified shall be divested |
| (2) The Governor may, by proclamation in the Gazette, vest such lands in the Colonial Treasurer, or other Minister, as trustee on behalf of His Majesty the King. |
5 . (1) The following acts of the Housing Board
and the Minister are validated :—
| (a) | The sale or leasing of land or land and buildings to persons not qualified under the Principal Act, or upon terms not authorised by the said Ac t ; |
(b)
| (b) | the reduction of the price and the extension of the period of payment for any land or buildings ; |
| (c) | the provision of temporary services for water supply, lighting, and sewerage in the case of certain houses built and sold or leased under the Principal Act, the giving of guarantees in connection with such provision, and the imposition of charges to pay for such services; |
| (d) | the setting apart of land as sites for buildings, or for religious, charitable, or municipal purposes; |
| (e) | the setting apart of land for public recreation or lor other public purposes, and the improve ment of such lands ; |
| (f) | the erection of buildings for residential, business, or other purposes or for public use; |
| (g) | the making of advances or the incurring of expenditure for the erection or improvement of houses ; |
| (h) | the making of advances or the incurring of expenditure to enable an applicant to complete the purchase and the erection or improvement of a house or site, or both ; |
(i) the acceptance of deposits which were less than five per centum of the amount advanced or expended under the Principal Act ; and the acceptance of the lodgment of deeds of land in lieu of the lodgments of deposits required
| by the Principal Ac t ; |
| (j) | the extension of the term of payment for brick, concrete, and stone buildings to forty years ; |
| (k) | the charging of the cost of any of the fore going upon the Housing Fund ; |
(1) the sale by auction of any land and buildings to any purchaser at any price and subject to any conditions.
(2) All sales, purchases, payments, and transac
tions made or entered into by the Minister or the
Housing hoard before the passing of this Act, which
are
are in conformity with the provisions of the Principal Act as amended by this Act, shall be deemed to have been and to be valid.
(3) The Minister may complete any sales, pur
chases, and transactions pending at the passing of this
Ac t ; and may grant concessions in connection therewith.
Power to vest land in the Commissioners of the Govern
| ment Savings Bank of New South | Wales. |
6 . (1) The Governor may from time to time, by proclamation published in the Gazette, vest in the Commissioners of the Government Savings Bank of New South Wales, as and from a date specified in the proclamation, any land vested in the Minister and which is the subject of an agreement for sale, and tlie right to receive any moneys payable under such agreement, and the right to receive any moneys payable to the Minister in respect of advances made by him or the Housing Board, and the securities therefor, for such estate and interest as is vested in the Minister at the date specified in the proclamation, subject to the equities affecting the same.
(2) The Governor shall not issue any such proclamation except with the consent of the Commis sioners, and—
| (a) | until a statement in the prescribed form of the amounts due by each purchaser or mortgagor |
| charges has been certified to by the Auditor- | in respect of principal, interest, and other | General to be correct and in accordance with the books of account, records, and securities kept by the Housing Board appointed under the Housing Act, 1912, or the Minister; and | |
| (b) | until all completed securities or other docu ments required by the Commissioners have been handed to them. |
(3) Upon the date so specified in the proclama
tion under this section in the Gazette, the land therein
described, the right to receive and recover any amounts
therein stated to he payable in respect thereof, the securities for money, and the right to receive and recover such moneys shall he vested in the Commis sioners without any further assurance for all the estate, right, title, and interest of the Minister therein, subject to the equities affecting the same.
(4) Any person indebted at the date so specified in the proclamation in any sum of money in respect of such land or security, shall pay such sum to the Commissioners in accordance with the terms of his agreement or of the security, and the receipt of the Commissioners shall be a sufficient discharge for any such sum, and any right of action accrued to or against, and any agreement, mortgage, bond, guarantee, lease, covenant, judgment debt, policy of insurance, or obliga tion made or entered into by or with the Housing Board or the Minister, in relation to any land, security, or chose in action so vested by proclamation in the Commissioners may be prosecuted and enforced by or against the Commissioners in their name as if the right of action had originally accrued to or against, or the agreement, mortgage, bond, guarantee, lease, covenant, judgment debt, policy of insurance, or obligation had been made or entered into with the Commissioners.