Modular Housing: A Faster Path Home
Known for its beaches, hot springs and coastal lifestyle, the Mornington Peninsula is one of Victoria’s most popular destinations. Yet behind this image is a serious housing crisis.
The Peninsula has recorded the highest number of people sleeping rough among Victorian local government areas, including the City of Melbourne. Many more are sleeping in cars, moving between couches or living in overcrowded and temporary accommodation. Women and children are among those most affected.
When the need for housing is this urgent, finding ways to deliver permanent homes sooner matters.
Women’s Property Initiatives is creating seven modular homes for women and children on the Mornington Peninsula. The development will include three two-storey townhouses for single mothers and their children, and four single-storey townhouses for older women.
In 2025, Homes for Homes granted $100,000 to the project through its ninth grant round. The project was assessed by Homes for Homes’ independent Housing Advisory Group, which recognised the opportunity to support an experienced housing provider, respond to an immediate local need and help deliver permanent homes through a faster construction approach.
This is why the project matters to Homes for Homes and our partners. Contributions raised through the property industry allow Homes for Homes to respond to housing needs as they emerge and support practical projects that are ready to move forward.
Modular construction can deliver homes faster than conventional building methods. In a community where women and children are already living without safe and secure housing, a shorter construction period means people can move into permanent homes sooner.
“The two cohorts, women with children and older women represent the most affected and the fastest growing cohorts experiencing homelessness in the Mornington Peninsula Shire, so that’s why it’s great to be able to deliver something so quickly using modular construction. It’s just clever building, really.”
Lucy Lyon, Assistant Development Manager, Women’s Property Initiatives
The project has been supported by a 30-year land lease from Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, funding from Homes Victoria through the Big Housing Build, and philanthropic contributions from Homes for Homes, Ten Women and the Jack and Ethel Goldin Foundation.
Together, this support is helping Women’s Property Initiatives deliver seven safe and permanent homes for women and children who urgently need them.