Ms Phillips officially launched her re-election campaign in Nowra today, joined by Shadow Minister for Education and Women Tanya Plibersek, Whitlam MP Stephen Jones, and state senator Tim Ayres.

Housing affordability is the top concern for Gilmore residents in this election.

The latest estimates are that around 400 people are experiencing homelessness, and there is a social housing shortfall of 3300 properties; currently, people are waiting anywhere from five to 10 years for social housing.

Ms Phillips said Labor's plan to fix the local housing crisis is a $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund. She also hinted at further commitments from Labor in the housing space.

Nationally, it will build 30,000 new social and affordable housing properties over a five year period - there is currently no estimate for how many homes are planned for Gilmore under the proposed scheme.

"More needs to be done - we'll have more to say on housing in the lead up to the election," Mrs Phillips said.

"But it's only an Albanese Labor government that is investing in affordable and social housing.

"[Housing affordability] is a very serious issue, and that's why our Housing Australia Future Fund is so crucial - it's the biggest investment in affordable and social housing that we'll have seen in decades, and a portion of those new properties will be set aside for essential workers.

"Let me be clear: the government has done nothing on housing. They have continually ignored this crisis that has been occurring."

Acknowledging the 'squeeze' on rental supply across the Gilmore electorate, Liberal candidate Andrew Constance said he wants to see a multi-faceted approach to region's housing crisis.

"There's a number of issues which have affected supply. Firstly, south of Conjola we have lost 1250 homes to bushfires," he said.

"We've also got a lot of people moving to the region, coupled with people using their investment properties for Airbnb... so it has just squeezed on the supply of rentals.

"On the social housing side, I think there is a real need and opportunity to do what the [Shoalhaven City] Council has done, where you've got a parcel of community land and partner with a housing provider in Southern Cross Housing to build multiple social housing properties.

"They can do it with funding from the New South Wales government's Community Housing Innovation Fund, or the federal government also funds housing providers in the form of low interest loans."

Mr Constance also pointed to local charities like Salt Ministries, which have programs to provide affordable rental housing in the Shoalhaven, as well as changes in the Morrison government's first home buyer scheme.

He said the latest expansion to the scheme would "potentially assist people who could move from renting to their first home".

The government's 2022-23 budget allocates more places in the first home buyer scheme - up to 35,000 a year - with an extra 10,000 places specifically for buyers in the regions and up to 5000 identified places for single parents.

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