Elderly on public housing list becoming homeless
Nov 8, 2023 6:21:16 GMT 7
Denis-NFA and ghostbuster like this
Post by bear on Nov 8, 2023 6:21:16 GMT 7
More than 500 Queenslanders over 80 years of age waiting for public housing after being priced out of rentals
Elderly pensioners and retirees on the waiting list for public housing are becoming homeless or being forced out of the cities they have lived in for decades amid Queensland's worsening rental crisis.
Key points:
More than 3,600 people over the age of 65 are waiting for public housing in Queensland
Pensioner Judy Tate is living in a van while she waits for a spot to become available
Homelessness services report a 30 per cent increase in demand this year
The latest data from the Queensland Department of Housing reveals that 546 people over the age of 80 are on the waiting list for public housing in the state.
The figures, released in August, show 25,363 applications on Queensland's public housing waiting list.
Around a third of the more than 41,000 people on the waiting list are homeless.
There were 3,608 people over the age of 65 on the public housing register, up from 2,990 in November 2019.
The average waiting time for people with "high" and "very high" needs is 19 months.
A man and a woman squeeze into the close sleeping quarters of a van with their small staffordshire terrier-cross.
Nationwide, just 0.8 per cent of available rental properties are unoccupied — an all-time low — according to Domain's October vacancy rate report.
On the Gold Coast, where the vacancy rate is 0.6 per cent, a cutthroat rental market is driving up prices and forcing long-term residents out of their homes.
Pensioner Judy Tate is sleeping in a van after she was priced out of the Broadbeach unit she had been living in for four years.
Ms Tate has been approved for public housing but was told she could be waiting two years for a property to become available.
She knows many people like her are in the same boat.
"Most of us have worked all our life and now we are just nothing to anybody," she said.
"It's not the vendors' fault either — with interest rates going up so high they have to cover their costs as well.
"It's a no-win situation.
Having struggled to pay $370 per week in rent, when her landlord told her it was being increased to $425 Ms Tate knew she would not be able to afford it.
Ms Tate said the apartment was eventually leased for $450 per week.
"I never thought I would be homeless," she said.
"My anxiety is just through the roof. I am struggling to cope with it.
"Mentally I am a nervous wreck. It is really, really hard."
For now, her best option is parking overnight at showgrounds where she has access to communal toilets and showers.
Sometimes she stays with friends or can sleep on her daughter's couch, which she said she did not like to do.
"My daughter said, "Mum, you are 67, you can't live in the van like that,'" she said.
"They are in a little three-bedroom townhouse with one bathroom and there are three kids, two adults, two dogs, and me when I'm staying there.
"Even though they say I'm not, you do [feel like you're imposing].
"It's just not possible to do it long term."
Still, Ms Tate said she would prefer the van to living in a share house with strangers.
'Better to be homeless'
Godfrey Brown knows what it's like to be homeless — he's been on and off the streets of the Gold Coast for years.
The 69-year-old is currently sharing a small unit with a friend.
But the cost of keeping a roof over his head is making him question whether it's worth it. He said it was easier to make his money last when he didn't have to pay for accommodation.
"Sometimes I feel it might be better to go back to being homeless," Mr Brown said.
"I'm on a fortnightly pension and when you're homeless it lasts from payday to payday.
Mr Brown said he paid about 40 per cent of his pension on rent each fortnight, then there are bills and food to pay for, and any loans he's taken in between paydays to keep himself afloat.
"It doesn't leave much," he said.
Mr Brown stayed in touch with some of the rough sleepers he knew from his time on the streets.
"Most of them are scared … they're scared of getting attacked by drunks," he said.
"Some of them are hungry but they'd rather go and hide and sleep hungry than go out at night and look for handouts because they're scared."
Changing faces of homelessness
Judy and Godfrey are among a changing demographic of people seeking housing assistance amid Queensland's rental crisis.
Chair of the Gold Coast Homelessness Network Maria Leebeek said demand for her service had increased 30 per cent in the past year.
"We are seeing a spike in people who are 80 years plus coming to our support and charity services," she said.
"A lot of people are on pensions and income support, so don't have a lot of money, and that's the challenge.
"Unfortunately for some people, it has been about moving out of the Gold Coast."
Queensland Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the government had provided almost $877,000 in financial support to renters on the Gold Coast.
"We're also providing $15 million for specialist homelessness services on the Gold Coast this financial year to help people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness," she said.
Rogue Airbnb crackdown
The secret short-term rental market is cheating councils out of millions and contributing to the housing crisis.
Real estate agent Tiger Malan, who manages properties in the blue-chip suburbs around Burleigh Heads, said anything cheaper than $800 per week was leased "within hours".
He said increased demand over the summer holidays created a "double whammy" effect that exacerbated the critical shortage of available rentals.
"I think it did improve around winter and now it's getting tougher again," Mr Malan said.
"A lot of the units and beachfront stuff get swallowed up by the short-term letting market.
"Because you get better rates through Christmas a lot of the apartments that would otherwise ease the burden are currently sitting on Airbnb for $1000 per night — and lots of them are getting it."
www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-08/seniors-retirees-pensioners-homeless-rental-housing-crisis/103061674
Elderly pensioners and retirees on the waiting list for public housing are becoming homeless or being forced out of the cities they have lived in for decades amid Queensland's worsening rental crisis.
Key points:
More than 3,600 people over the age of 65 are waiting for public housing in Queensland
Pensioner Judy Tate is living in a van while she waits for a spot to become available
Homelessness services report a 30 per cent increase in demand this year
The latest data from the Queensland Department of Housing reveals that 546 people over the age of 80 are on the waiting list for public housing in the state.
The figures, released in August, show 25,363 applications on Queensland's public housing waiting list.
Around a third of the more than 41,000 people on the waiting list are homeless.
There were 3,608 people over the age of 65 on the public housing register, up from 2,990 in November 2019.
The average waiting time for people with "high" and "very high" needs is 19 months.
A man and a woman squeeze into the close sleeping quarters of a van with their small staffordshire terrier-cross.
Nationwide, just 0.8 per cent of available rental properties are unoccupied — an all-time low — according to Domain's October vacancy rate report.
On the Gold Coast, where the vacancy rate is 0.6 per cent, a cutthroat rental market is driving up prices and forcing long-term residents out of their homes.
Pensioner Judy Tate is sleeping in a van after she was priced out of the Broadbeach unit she had been living in for four years.
Ms Tate has been approved for public housing but was told she could be waiting two years for a property to become available.
She knows many people like her are in the same boat.
"Most of us have worked all our life and now we are just nothing to anybody," she said.
"It's not the vendors' fault either — with interest rates going up so high they have to cover their costs as well.
"It's a no-win situation.
Having struggled to pay $370 per week in rent, when her landlord told her it was being increased to $425 Ms Tate knew she would not be able to afford it.
Ms Tate said the apartment was eventually leased for $450 per week.
"I never thought I would be homeless," she said.
"My anxiety is just through the roof. I am struggling to cope with it.
"Mentally I am a nervous wreck. It is really, really hard."
For now, her best option is parking overnight at showgrounds where she has access to communal toilets and showers.
Sometimes she stays with friends or can sleep on her daughter's couch, which she said she did not like to do.
"My daughter said, "Mum, you are 67, you can't live in the van like that,'" she said.
"They are in a little three-bedroom townhouse with one bathroom and there are three kids, two adults, two dogs, and me when I'm staying there.
"Even though they say I'm not, you do [feel like you're imposing].
"It's just not possible to do it long term."
Still, Ms Tate said she would prefer the van to living in a share house with strangers.
'Better to be homeless'
Godfrey Brown knows what it's like to be homeless — he's been on and off the streets of the Gold Coast for years.
The 69-year-old is currently sharing a small unit with a friend.
But the cost of keeping a roof over his head is making him question whether it's worth it. He said it was easier to make his money last when he didn't have to pay for accommodation.
"Sometimes I feel it might be better to go back to being homeless," Mr Brown said.
"I'm on a fortnightly pension and when you're homeless it lasts from payday to payday.
Mr Brown said he paid about 40 per cent of his pension on rent each fortnight, then there are bills and food to pay for, and any loans he's taken in between paydays to keep himself afloat.
"It doesn't leave much," he said.
Mr Brown stayed in touch with some of the rough sleepers he knew from his time on the streets.
"Most of them are scared … they're scared of getting attacked by drunks," he said.
"Some of them are hungry but they'd rather go and hide and sleep hungry than go out at night and look for handouts because they're scared."
Changing faces of homelessness
Judy and Godfrey are among a changing demographic of people seeking housing assistance amid Queensland's rental crisis.
Chair of the Gold Coast Homelessness Network Maria Leebeek said demand for her service had increased 30 per cent in the past year.
"We are seeing a spike in people who are 80 years plus coming to our support and charity services," she said.
"A lot of people are on pensions and income support, so don't have a lot of money, and that's the challenge.
"Unfortunately for some people, it has been about moving out of the Gold Coast."
Queensland Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the government had provided almost $877,000 in financial support to renters on the Gold Coast.
"We're also providing $15 million for specialist homelessness services on the Gold Coast this financial year to help people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness," she said.
Rogue Airbnb crackdown
The secret short-term rental market is cheating councils out of millions and contributing to the housing crisis.
Real estate agent Tiger Malan, who manages properties in the blue-chip suburbs around Burleigh Heads, said anything cheaper than $800 per week was leased "within hours".
He said increased demand over the summer holidays created a "double whammy" effect that exacerbated the critical shortage of available rentals.
"I think it did improve around winter and now it's getting tougher again," Mr Malan said.
"A lot of the units and beachfront stuff get swallowed up by the short-term letting market.
"Because you get better rates through Christmas a lot of the apartments that would otherwise ease the burden are currently sitting on Airbnb for $1000 per night — and lots of them are getting it."
www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-08/seniors-retirees-pensioners-homeless-rental-housing-crisis/103061674
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