Housing and homelessness peaks call for “fairer system of housing”

By Kirsty Timsans · · 2 min read
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Housing and homelessness peak bodies in NSW including the Tenants’ Union of NSW, Homelessness NSW and Shelter NSW have issued a joint statement on the housing affordability crisis, calling on all levels of government to “ensure a fairer system of housing.”

The statement, which outlined the peaks’ position on housing affordability, rejected claims that increasing supply will solve the affordability crisis in NSW unless it is specifically targeted towards the lower end of homeownership and rental markets.

“There is an enormous gap between government sponsored housing and the private rental market. We would support direct investment by the state government to increase affordable housing supply. Private investors need encouragement to provide affordable housing.”

According to the statement, in NSW attempts to assist people on low incomes into the private rental market is an “almost impossible task” with figures from the 2011 Census showing more than 86,000 households in NSW in rental housing stress often pay more than 30% of their income in rent.

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The report suggested changes in unemployment including increasing levels of casualisation, contracting and job insecurity have hindered the capacity of first home buyers to sign up to long term mortgages confidently.

This comes as new research from the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) revealed that almost 40% of Australian jobs that exist today have a “moderate to high likelihood” of disappearing in the next 10 to 15 years.

“The pace of technological advancement in the last 20 years has been unprecedented and that pace is likely to continue for the next 20 years,” said CEDA Chief Executive Professor Stephen Martin.

“Our labour market will be fundamentally reshaped by the scope and breadth of technological change, and if we do not embrace massive economic reform and focus on incentivising innovation, we will simply be left behind in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.”