The NSW government will try to lift its status as one of the state's worst landlords with an overhaul of how public housing repairs are handled for tens of thousands of residents.
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Existing private contracts for overseeing the maintenance of social housing properties will not be renewed as Labor instead sets up a single "maintenance hub" to handle repair requests.
New state agency Homes NSW will triage requests and issue work orders for private contractors in a bid to rein in a maintenance backlog, the government said on Monday.
A government-run call centre and app to track the status of requests for the state's 95,000 social housing properties is due to be in place by mid-2024.
Housing Minister Rose Jackson said the daily stories from public housing tenants who wanted basic repairs carried out broke her heart.
"I often refer to NSW (government) as one of the worst landlords in the state - this is (because) of over a decade of neglect (and) mismanagement," she posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Premier Chris Minns said the government was working to fix the state's housing crisis and the solutions included improving the quality of social homes.
"Everyone deserves access to safe and secure shelter without having to jump through hoops to ensure essential maintenance is done," he said.
Labor won the March election with an anti-privatisation platform, claiming the use of outsourced contracts and asset sales had led to poor outcomes for taxpayers in key areas such as transport and energy.
Earlier this month it was revealed the government would not renew the contract for the operator of Junee Correctional Centre after almost three decades of private-sector control.
Australian Associated Press
