SDA homes in Melbourne, designed around how you live.
SDA is more than an accessible building. It is a home where the doorways, the bathroom, the technology — every detail — quietly works for you, so independence stops being a daily fight and starts being a given.
Your SDA home
Built around how you live
Designed-in features
Today
On-site support
24/7
Backup power
Always on
Design category
High Physical
From your team
“All set 💙”
When the house itself is the thing holding you back.
For many people, the hardest part of the day is not the disability — it is the home that was never built for it. A bathroom you cannot use safely. A doorway a wheelchair will not fit. Stairs that decide where you can and cannot go.
It is exhausting, and it is unfair. Independence should not depend on whether you can squeeze past the furniture. The right home removes those barriers so completely that you stop noticing them at all.
That is what Specialist Disability Accommodation is for — a home engineered around you, so your energy goes into living, not navigating.
The right home does not just shelter you. It quietly hands back the independence the wrong one took away.
What Specialist Disability Accommodation actually is
SDA is NDIS funding for the home itself — purpose-built or specially modified housing for people with extreme functional impairment or very high support needs, designed so daily life is safer, easier and more independent.
The building, engineered for you
Step-free access, wider doorways, accessible bathrooms, ceiling hoists, assistive technology and more — built in, not bolted on.
A home, not an institution
Modern SDA can be your own apartment, a villa or a shared home. You choose the location, the type and who you live with.
Safe and resilient
Backup power, robust construction and clinical-ready design where it is needed — so the home holds up when it matters most.
Paired with your support
SDA is the home; the support inside it is usually SIL. Together they make truly independent living possible.
The one thing everyone gets confused about
SDA is the home, not the help. SDA funding pays for the specialist dwelling — not your support workers (that is SIL) and not your everyday rent and living costs. Knowing the difference is the key to planning your housing and support together.
SDA design categories, explained.
SDA homes are funded against four design categories. Your assessed needs decide which one fits — and we help you get matched to the right home and build type.
Improved Liveability
Better physical access plus features for people with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairment — clear sight lines, easy navigation, calmer spaces.
Fully Accessible
Designed for significant physical impairment — wheelchair access throughout, accessible bathrooms and kitchens, step-free living.
Robust
Resilient, durable design that reduces risk to the resident and others — for people with complex behaviours who need a safe, sturdy home.
High Physical Support
For very high support needs — ceiling hoists, backup power, structural provision for assistive tech and clinical care built in.
SDA is likely a good fit if…
- You have extreme functional impairment or very high support needs in your everyday living.
- Your current home creates real barriers to safety, access or independence.
- You need built-in features like wheelchair access, a ceiling hoist or backup power.
- Your NDIS goals include living independently in a home that works for your body and mind.
- You are pairing a new home with SIL or other in-home support.
SDA might not be the right tool if…
- Your needs are mainly for support, not the building itself — that is SIL or daily-living support.
- Minor changes to your current home would do — look at Home Modifications instead.
- You need a short-term or interim place to stay — consider MTA or respite (STA).
- You do not yet have SDA funding assessed in your NDIS plan — we can help you build the case.
SDA is funded for a smaller group of participants with the highest needs. Not sure if you qualify? A Meet & Greet gives you an honest read — and a clear plan to pursue it if you do.
How SDA funding actually works
SDA is funded separately from your support. It pays the provider for the specialist home, while you contribute a reasonable rent. Here is the journey in plain English.
SDA need is assessed
An assessment determines your eligibility and the right design category and building type for your needs.
SDA funding enters your plan
Once approved, SDA funding sits in your NDIS plan, tied to a design category and location.
You choose an enrolled home
You select an SDA-enrolled dwelling that fits — location, type and housemates included. You are never simply placed.
Home + support, together
SDA payments cover the dwelling; we line up SIL or other support inside it so everything works as one.
SDA pays for: The specialist dwelling — the building, its accessible design and features.
You contribute: A Reasonable Rent Contribution (typically ~25% of the Disability Support Pension plus Commonwealth Rent Assistance).
SDA does not pay for: Your support workers (that is SIL), food, utilities or everyday living costs.
Support is separate: SIL funds the help inside the home — we coordinate both so there are no gaps.
A real conversation
You reach out. Within about two hours a real person responds — no call centre, no script. We listen first.
You feel heard, and a little lighter.
Step 1 of 6 · scroll to follow the journey
The myths about SDA — and the truth.
Most hesitation about specialist housing comes from old ideas. Tap each one to see what modern SDA is really like.
SDA, the Gencare way.
The same NDIS funding, a completely different experience — because a specialist home is only as good as the people and support that come with it.
Home and support, as one
We line up the SDA dwelling and the SIL support together, so you never have to stitch two systems into one life.
We match, we do not place
Location, home type and housemates chosen around you — because where and who you live with matters as much as the building.
Radical transparency
Through Gencare OS, families see support, maintenance and plan progress as it happens. No chasing, no black box.
Safe, and proven
A registered NDIS provider, independently audited, fully insured, with 100% worker-screened teams and clear safeguarding.
The details handled
Maintenance, accessibility, backup systems — the home keeps working so you never have to worry about it.
Care that is actually warm
We hire for heart and train for skill. A specialist home, delivered by people who treat you as a person, never a tenancy.
Specialist Disability Accommodation, answered
SDA is NDIS funding for housing designed for people with extreme functional impairment or very high support needs. It pays for a purpose-built or specially modified home — the building itself — with features like wheelchair access, ceiling hoists, robust construction or backup power, depending on your needs.
No — and this is the key thing to understand. SDA is the home (the bricks and mortar). SIL is the support (the people who help you live day to day). They often go together, but they are funded separately. Gencare coordinates both so your home and your support work as one.
There are four: Improved Liveability (access plus sensory/cognitive features), Fully Accessible (for significant physical impairment), Robust (resilient design for complex behaviours), and High Physical Support (very high needs — hoists, backup power, clinical-ready design). Your assessed needs determine which category you are funded for.
SDA is funded for a smaller group of NDIS participants with extreme functional impairment or very high support needs, plus a housing goal. The NDIA assesses eligibility. The quickest way to know is a free Meet & Greet — we will give you an honest read and help build the evidence if SDA is right for you.
SDA funding pays the provider for the dwelling. You contribute a Reasonable Rent Contribution — typically around 25% of the Disability Support Pension plus any Commonwealth Rent Assistance. You also cover everyday living costs like food and utilities. SDA does not pay for your support workers.
Yes. You choose the location, the type of home (apartment, villa or shared house) and, if you share, your housemates. SDA funding follows you to an enrolled dwelling that fits. At Gencare we match carefully — you are never simply placed.
No. SDA can be your own home or a shared one. Sharing can lower support costs and add company, but if living on your own is right for you, that can be supported too. We match the model to you.
SDA is assessed against strict criteria, so the application is evidence-led. It usually needs an SDA-specific housing assessment from an occupational therapist, evidence that you have extreme functional impairment or very high support needs, and a case that SDA is the most appropriate and cost-effective housing solution for you. It is a demanding process and it can take time — but it is one we and your Support Coordinator can walk through with you, rather than leaving you to navigate it alone.
Yes. Gencare is headquartered in Melbourne and supports participants across Victoria, with our footprint expanding into Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and regional areas. SDA housing stock is limited everywhere, so the honest answer depends on your design category and timing as much as your postcode — tell us where you are and we will be straight with you about what is realistic.
Supports that pair well with SDA
Specialist Disability Accommodation across Melbourne and Victoria.
An SDA home is a long-term decision, and location is half of it — how far you are from family, from your health team, from the places that make a week feel like your own. These are the regions our teams work in today.
SDA housing stock is limited everywhere, so what is realistic depends on your design category and timing as much as your postcode. Tell us where you are and we will give you an honest answer about what is available near you.
Let us find the right home, together.
A warm, no-pressure Meet & Greet — we listen first, you decide everything. A real person replies within ~2 hours.