Article | Future Cities
Business Insights | Unlocking Victoria's Future Through Strategic Government Divestments
Victoria's surplus government land represents more than a transactional opportunity. When strategically released, these assets can help address housing supply challenges, attract investment and create stronger, more connected communities.
August 28, 2026
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Government asset disposals are often measured by the immediate transaction outcome. Yet some of Victoria’s most significant opportunities lie not in the sale itself, but in what happens next.
As governments seek to address housing supply challenges, support economic growth and maximise the value of public assets, surplus land can become a powerful catalyst for creating new places to live, work and play. The opportunity is particularly compelling when disposals are viewed through a broader lens that considers long-term community outcomes alongside financial returns.
Across Victoria, governments hold land in locations connected to transport, education, healthcare and employment centres. These assets can help unlock new housing supply, attract private investment and support the creation of more complete and resilient communities. The challenge is ensuring land is brought to market in a way that aligns public objectives with market capability.
Housing affordability, population growth and construction challenges continue to place pressure on supply across many parts of Victoria. While no single initiative will solve these challenges, strategically released government land can play an important role in enabling new housing outcomes and creating opportunities for long-term investment.
Importantly, successful places require more than new dwellings. They need access to jobs, services, education, recreation and community infrastructure. When disposals are planned with these wider outcomes in mind, land can become a platform for broader economic and social benefit.
As governments seek to address housing supply challenges, support economic growth and maximise the value of public assets, surplus land can become a powerful catalyst for creating new places to live, work and play. The opportunity is particularly compelling when disposals are viewed through a broader lens that considers long-term community outcomes alongside financial returns.
Across Victoria, governments hold land in locations connected to transport, education, healthcare and employment centres. These assets can help unlock new housing supply, attract private investment and support the creation of more complete and resilient communities. The challenge is ensuring land is brought to market in a way that aligns public objectives with market capability.
Creating value beyond the transaction
The conversation around government land is increasingly shifting from asset disposal to place creation.Housing affordability, population growth and construction challenges continue to place pressure on supply across many parts of Victoria. While no single initiative will solve these challenges, strategically released government land can play an important role in enabling new housing outcomes and creating opportunities for long-term investment.
Importantly, successful places require more than new dwellings. They need access to jobs, services, education, recreation and community infrastructure. When disposals are planned with these wider outcomes in mind, land can become a platform for broader economic and social benefit.
Some of Victoria’s most valuable government assets are not existing buildings or infrastructure, but the opportunity embedded within underutilised land. When brought to market with a clear vision, these sites can unlock investment, housing and community outcomes that extend well beyond the transaction itself.
Enabling housing at scale
One of the greatest opportunities presented by government land is its potential contribution to housing supply.CBRE's research highlights the importance of creating market settings that support sustained delivery of social and affordable housing alongside broader residential development. Well-located government land can help facilitate this outcome by providing opportunities for the private sector, community housing providers and institutional capital to participate in housing delivery at greater scale.
As investor interest in living sectors continues to mature, there is growing recognition that social and affordable housing should be considered as part of a long-term housing ecosystem rather than as a standalone solution. Strategic land releases can help foster this approach and encourage more diverse forms of housing delivery.
Government land has an important role to play in expanding housing choice across Victoria. The biggest opportunity is creating pathways for public objectives, private capital and housing delivery capability to work together in a way that supports long-term supply.
A long-term perspective
The most successful government disposals are those that balance commercial outcomes with broader public benefit.Viewed this way, surplus land is more than a property asset. It is an opportunity to support housing, attract investment, strengthen communities and create the foundations for Victoria’s future growth. Done well, government disposals can leave a legacy measured not by the sale itself, but by the places that emerge long after the transaction is complete.
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Trent Hobart
Head of Development – Capital Markets, Pacific
Steph Harper
National Director, Living Sectors, Valuation & Advisory Services, Australia
