Melbourne rough sleeper Morgan has spent years getting by with the help of cash donations from strangers, allowing him to get what he needs when he needs it.
Some people experiencing homelessness still use cash to get by and pay for necessities, support services say. The number of Australians who use cash has halved since COVID-19.
There are calls to decriminalise “begging” and provide more support to help rough sleepers.
Governments have long been urged to reinvest in and build more affordable and social housing stock.
Children living in tents in the bush. Single mums sliding into homelessness after rent increases. Pensioners sleeping in vans after working all their lives.
We’ve all seen stories of the many Australians engulfed by the housing crisis, as well as the fierce debate about how to best go about correcting course. For years there’s been one solution most experts have raised over and over again: building more social and affordable housing.
But it doesn’t seem to have happened yet.
Brisbane’s Community Development network have released a list of useful contacts and hours of operation over the holiday period, including:
Bipartisan support for temporary extra government spending to preserve businesses and jobs through JobKeeper was one of the few positive outcomes from the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognition that the long-term damage caused by short-term economic crises far exceeds the cost of temporary government spending to avoid it underpinned that consensus.
It’s worth considering now whether the same logic could be applied to create a “HomeKeeper” program, especially given Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock’s recent message that interest rates could stay higher for longer than expected.
HomeKeeper could help financially stressed mortgagors avoid losing their homes during the current interest rate crunch, and stop them joining already too-long rental queues — or worse, becoming homeless.
Mandating social housing in new high density developments is key to tackling the homelessness crisis, Homelessness NSW says. CEO Dom Rowe says: “We welcome any moves that require social and affordable housing in high density developments near existing transport and services.
“We will not be able to build our way out of the worst homelessness crisis in a generation without ensuring that 10 per cent of dwellings are social housing by 2050.
Click here to view original media release at www.miragenews.com
You can also read coverage in The Sydney Morning Herald (subscription required)
“The NSW government will force developers to include affordable and social housing in all high-density apartment developments built around priority public transport precincts in a bid to ease the housing crisis for low-income earners and essential workers.”
Peak homelessness bodies, family violence specialists and sexual assault services joined forces in a new and urgent call for the City of Perth to delay the closure of its Safe Night Space service – at least until after the Christmas season.
The call came on the eve of the annual 16 days of activism for domestic violence, and in the wake of new data showing record demand for services like Safe Night Space, which is operated by Ruah Community Services and supports up to 30 women every night.
Family violence is the leading cause of homelessness among women and most women turning to Safe Night Space for help are not only without a safe place to spend the night but have also experienced violence and abuse – either on the streets, or in the home from which they’ve escaped.
Australia’s housing crisis has been building for a long time. Too many Australians remain homeless. Many more struggle to afford to keep a roof over their head and still pay the bills. Others can’t find a home close to where they want to live and work, or a home to call their own.
Low-income renters are suffering the most, finding it harder to secure stable tenure and make ends meet. Historically, we have not built enough housing to meet the needs of Australia’s growing population.
Building more housing benefits everyone, but there is also an urgent need for more government support to help house vulnerable Australians and reduce homelessness. Australia’s social housing stock has stagnated in recent decades. The National Housing and Homelessness Plan should give priority to constructing new social housing for people at serious risk of homelessness. But boosting social housing is expensive: it should be reserved for people most in need, and at significant risk of becoming homeless for the long term.
Access the full summary and download the Report at www.grattan.edu.au.
Many of us were anxious and fearful during the COVID pandemic, but we’ve probably started to feel a lot better since lockdowns have stopped and life looks more like it did previously.
But new data shows that hasn’t been the case for Australia’s young people.
Our wide-ranging survey of youth across the country reveals many young people fear they’ll never be able to own a home and will end up worse-off than their parents.
Victoria should commit to build 60,000 new social housing dwellings by 2034, end the first home owners grant and lobby the federal government to examine tax concessions for investment properties, the state inquiry into the rental and housing affordability crisis has recommended in its final report.
The inquiry report makes no recommendations on rent regulation, which has been a contentious issue between the Greens and Labor.
ABC News finance presenter Alan Kohler is the author of the latest Quarterly Essay. Titled The Great Divide, it’s a forensic examination of Australia’s “housing mess and how to fix it”.
A former editor of The Age and The Australian Financial Review, he founded the Eureka Report and has written for a number of Australian mastheads. His books include It’s Your Money.