The ACT government has flagged it could turn the former Northbourne Flats site into a build-to-rent block to make it more attractive to developers.

The Turner site has been empty for almost three years after an attempt to sell it in 2019 fell over.

The government has already sold $182 million worth of land on Canberra's main traffic corridor after starting Northbourne Avenue's redevelopment in 2016.

The Northbourne Flats site has been for sale for the past three years and it's future is still in limbo, the Suburban Land Agency saying the former public housing site is expected to go back on the market next financial year.

The agency is still considering its options for the release of the Turner site.

The massive 23,372-square-metre Turner block was originally put up for sale as part of a package with the former Northbourne Flats site in Braddon, which sits on the opposite side of the avenue.

Canberra developers John Russell and Wayne Gregory were selected as the preferred tender to build a development that included 200 apartments, social housing and a city farm.

The Suburban Land Agency said the sale failed because the preferred tender could not meet the reserve price.

When the sale of the sites fell through, the decision was made to split the blocks. JWLand bought the Braddon block last year for $28 million.

But the Suburban Land Agency said because the Turner block was larger it was more difficult to take to market.

A Suburban Land Agency spokeswoman said the block was the subject of a study.

"The SLA is undertaking a study that will examine site opportunities, current market conditions, infrastructure easements and territory plan requirements along with opportunities to consider including a 'build-to-rent' scheme and improved sustainability outcomes within the site," she said.

"This study will then inform a decision on how the Turner site will be re-released to the market."

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It comes as the ACT government is investigating the feasibility of the build-to-rent model to determine whether it could help grow the supply of affordable housing in the territory.

Under a build-to-rent model a developer retains ownership of all apartments in the building and all are leased out to tenants.

The ACT's feasibility study will look into the timing, industry appetite and suitable locations for the model.

The Turner block was one of seven government-owned blocks that were once part of the government's asset recycling initiative. It is the last major site to be unsold.

The deferred settlements of the Turner, Braddon and Macarthur House blocks resulted in a hit to the agency's bottom line last financial year.

According to budget papers, the Suburban Land Agency's revenue was $234 million lower than expected in 2019-20.

But land sales revenue was bolstered this financial year and was more than $600 million higher than estimated at $807 million.

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