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What can the grants be used for?
Grants from the Victorian Property Fund are available for the purposes specified in sections 76 (3) (a) to (h) of the Estate Agents Act 1980 as described below:
- community education, advice or information services regarding:
- the sale, purchase, lease or transfer of interests in real estate or businesses;
- the provision of finance or credit for the purpose of the sale, purchase or lease of real estate or businesses;
- the provision of finance or credit for the acquisition of any right to reside on land;
- owners corporations;
- retirement villages;
- residential tenancy rights and any other rights to reside on land;
- other consumer protection matters relating to interests in land;
- programs that promote the ownership of real estate;
- the training of estate agents and agents' representatives;
- dispute resolution and advocacy services in relation to disputes involving:
- the sale, purchase, lease or transfer of interests in real estate or businesses;
- the provision of finance or credit for the purpose of sale, purchase or lease of real estate or businesses;
- a resident, or proposed or former resident, of a retirement village regarding his or her residence right in that retirement village;
- an owners corporation or a member of an owners corporation or an occupier of a lot arising in relation to the operation of an owners corporation;
- the provision of estate agency services or owners corporations management services;
- other consumer protection matters relating to interests in land;
- reviewing, reforming or researching the law and procedures or reviewing and researching the markets for real estate regarding:
- the sale, purchase, lease or transfer of interests in real estate or businesses;
- the provision of finance or credit for the purpose of sale, purchase or lease of real estate or businesses;
- owners corporations;
- retirement villages;
- other consumer protection matters relating to interests in land;
- projects facilitating:
- the registration of interests in land;
- the compilation of other information relating to the ownership or use of land;
- projects providing or facilitating housing assistance for low income or disadvantaged Victorians (see More information below for additional information about making a grant application for this purpose);
- projects regarding:
- the development of environmentally sustainable housing;
- the protection of Victoria's natural and architectural heritage. (Please note that the Victorian Property Fund is not accepting heritage applications at this time. Enquiries regarding grants for heritage purposes should be directed to Heritage Victoria.)
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How are they awarded?
The Minister for Consumer Affairs awards grants from the Victorian Property Fund after consulting with the Estate Agents Council and Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) and with any industry associations, government departments and other bodies he or she thinks appropriate.
Grant applications are submitted to Consumer Affairs Victoria.
The applications are reviewed by Consumer Affairs Victoria and the Estate Agents Council, who both make independent recommendations to the Minister for Consumer Affairs. CAV makes recommendations to the Minister based on:
- Eligibility under s.76(3) of the Estate Agents Act 1980;
- The extent to which the project will contribute to desired government outcomes and will benefit the broad community;
- Whether the project provides a value-for-money use of VPF funds including an assessment of the proposal’s cost effectiveness and whether there is unwarranted duplication of other funding sources;
- Whether the project is capable of being evaluated against a set of agreed performance indicators;
- Whether the application clearly establishes that there are demonstrated and substantial project outputs;
- Whether the applicant satisfactorily demonstrates that the proposal is feasible and that they have the capacity to deliver the outputs;
- The applicant’s record of achievement as a provider of services or products relevant to the project; and
- The budgetary limits on the total funds available in the VPF.
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How long does it take?
The extent of the review process varies depending on the amount of funding sought and the complexity of the proposal. In most cases, a simple proposal for a grant of less than $100,000 will take around three months. A larger and more complex application can take six months or longer.
You will need to apply for your grant in time to allow for this processing time. Your application cannot be considered if your program/project is due to start before that time (e.g. in two months).
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More information
Additional information about making grant applications for projects providing or facilitating housing assistance can be obtained by:
The following pages provide more information on grants from the Victorian Property Fund:
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