An ageing population is caught in a perfect storm of rising house prices and rents, falling home ownership rates, mortgage debt carried into retirement, insecure rentals and a lack of social housing.
The last time an Australian government made housing the homeless a priority was 15 years ago. The Albanese government’s promised plan is a second chance to get it right by drawing on models that work.
In any given town, community and neighbourhood there will be homeless children, sometimes as young as 10, who are surviving without the effective care and protection of parents or guardians.
The main driver of homelessness in Australia is housing costs – post-COVID rents, house prices and interest rates are all much higher. To house everyone, the housing system needs a major overhaul.
JobKeeper, the COVID boost to JobSeeker, and moratoriums on rent increases and evictions all ended this month. Only smarter policies will prevent homelessness, as a landmark Victorian report explains.
Many older women are in desperate need of affordable housing where they can age in place securely, with dignity and as part of a community. The siheyuan model offers ways to meet these needs.
More people than expected needed help, and the states have found stable housing for less than a third of rough sleepers who were put up in hotels. A hands-off federal government simply isn’t helping.
Australia found shelter for more than 33,000 rough sleepers and other homeless people during the pandemic, but a coming surge in homelessness demands a comprehensive national housing strategy.
Debt-free property ownership is no longer a requirement for voting rights, but the idea remains that a person must have a residence in a particular community to be allowed to vote.
When the moratorium on evictions ends, even more Australians will face housing insecurity and homelessness. Beyond the moral and health cases, there’s a powerful financial reason to end homelessness.
Older women have been the fastest-growing group of homeless people in recent years. New research shows about 240,000 women aged 55 or older and another 165,000 women aged 45-54 are at risk.
Police officers are integral front-line workers during this extraordinary crisis. They should be empowered to act as protectors of the vulnerable, not as persecutors of homeless people.
The system isn’t working to prevent young Australians becoming homeless and to house them when they need it. New research finds a shift to proven community-based approaches can end decades of failure.