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Necessity Housing
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SDA and SIL: What's the Difference?

Two separate parts of an NDIS plan that often arrive together. One pays for the home; the other pays for the people who support you in it.

Side by side

The Home, and the Help Inside It

SDA is Specialist Disability Accommodation. SIL is Supported Independent Living. Here's how they compare.

Question
SDA: the home
SIL: the support
What it pays for
The home: a purpose-built dwelling and its accessible features.
The help: support workers who assist with daily life at home, often including overnight support.
Who is paid
The SDA provider that owns or manages the building. That's us.
A SIL provider you choose.
Where it sits in a plan
Capital supports.
Core supports.
How the amount is set
By the NDIS SDA price limits for the home's design category, building type and location.
By the support you need, usually set out in a quote and roster from your SIL provider.
What you pay yourself
Rent: the Reasonable Rent Contribution, which is capped by a formula.
Everyday living costs such as food and household bills, which the NDIS doesn't cover.
Who chooses
You choose the home.
You choose the provider, separately.
If you change one
Moving home doesn't mean changing your SIL provider.
Changing SIL provider doesn't mean moving out. Your home stays yours.

More on what SDA covers, the four design categories and how rent is worked out: Understanding SDA. Unfamiliar terms: NDIS and SDA acronyms.

In our homes

We're the Landlord, Not the Support Provider

Necessity Housing owns and manages the homes. Your participant keeps whichever SIL provider they choose, and if that relationship changes later, their housing doesn't go with it.

In practice we coordinate directly with the SIL provider on enrolment, rosters and site access, and every two-home build includes an onsite overnight assistance (OOA) room for support staff. See how our homes work.

Common questions

SDA and SIL Questions

Do I need both?
Not always. SDA can be funded without SIL, and many people receive SIL while living in ordinary housing. Your NDIS plan says what you're funded for. Your planner or support coordinator can explain it, or send the plan to us and we'll read it.
Can one organisation provide both?
Some do. We provide only the home, so your housing and your support stay separate, and a change to one doesn't put the other at risk.
What is the OOA room?
Onsite overnight assistance. Every two-home build we offer includes a room for support staff, so help is there overnight without taking over anyone's private space. How it's used is arranged with your SIL provider.
Who do I call about a repair?
Us. We're the landlord, and maintenance is handled in-house, so a repair request reaches someone who can act on it. Call 1300 255 495.
Who arranges moving in?
We prepare the SDA enrolment and tenancy paperwork, and coordinate with your SIL provider on rosters and site access, so the handover isn't something you have to manage.

Not Sure What Your Plan Covers?

Send it to us and we'll tell you what it funds and which of our homes would suit. If none would, we'll say so.

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