In the midst of the 2022 Federal Election campaign Anglicare Australia is calling on all parties and candidates to act on housing affordability. The call is made as Anglicare Australia releases its annual Rental Affordability Snapshot.
The Snapshot surveyed 45,992 rental listings across Australia and found that:
- 720 rentals (2%) were affordable for a person earning a full-time minimum wage
- 312 rentals (1%) were affordable for a person on the Age Pension
- 51 rentals (0%) were affordable for a person on the Disability Support Pension
- 7 rentals, (0%) all sharehouses, were affordable for a person on JobSeeker
- 1 sharehouse (0%) was affordable for a person on Youth Allowance.
“Australia’s housing crisis has reached fever pitch. No part of the country has been spared. Rents are shooting up in towns and regions, and our cities have never been more expensive,” said Anglicare Australia Executive Director Kasy Chambers.
“We keep hearing that this election is about living costs, but housing is the biggest cost facing Australians. People on low incomes don’t stand a chance. Less than 2% of rentals are affordable for a full-time worker on the minimum wage. For a person out of work, it’s 0%.
“Voters are desperate for action. Instead, parties are promising more of the same. At best they are offering grants that overheat the market. At worst they ignore the problem, telling struggling renters to buy a house. That’s not good enough.
“We’re calling on whoever wins the election to raise JobSeeker and other payments above the poverty line. If we don’t, people out of work will be pushed deeper into housing stress and even homelessness.
“We’re calling on Governments at every level to work together to protect people from unfair rent increases.
“And we’re calling for a big boost to affordable housing. Our shortfall is massive. We need 500,000 new social and affordable rentals across Australia. Investing in housing is the most powerful way to make the market more affordable, and boost regional communities doing it tough after the pandemic and floods.
“We’re asking all parties and candidates to walk the talk, and join us to end this crisis for good.”