An agreement on Universal Housing Design proposes that in ten years' time all new houses, including those on sprawling housing estates, will have some noticeable differences.

They won't have front steps, for starters. They'll have wide hallways, and a big bathroom downstairs with a wide door.

This is because houses will be designed to accommodate wheelchairs, for both disabled and older people. And the concept will become the norm, rather than the exception.

Bill Shorten, the Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities has been leading a dialogue between housing industry heavyweights and disability advocates.

He talks about what houses of the future will look like with Kristin Tomkins from the Housing Industry Association.