We need public and social housing

This Snapshot tells us is that no one is shielded from Australia’s overheated housing market.

But over the past thirty years, the federal government has moved away from building low-cost rentals. Social housing, for people on the lowest incomes, has also been in decline since the nineties. We now have a shortfall of 300,000 social and public rentals across Australia. And in that time, rents have skyrocketed.

Public and social housing once offered people safety net when they needed it. But Australia is now looking to the private rental market to provide housing for more and more people. And as our governments walk away from social housing, more people must fend for themselves in a market that is out of control. With over 115,000 people homeless – including a growing number of older people – we desperately need to increase the amount of social housing and put a roof over the head of every Australian.

The Everybody’s Home has found that this is what Australians want – 75% of Australians support more social housing. Anglicare Australia is calling for 500,000 new public and social housing properties.

After years of inaction, that call is urgent.