Rental Affordability Index

‘Abby’ is a single mum who called, worried that she was at risk of becoming homelessness.

She’d been advised her current rental had been sold and she needed to find new place to live.

Abby had been to some open houses but was distressed by the large number of people attending and all competing for the one place, with some offering more than has been advertised.

The real estate agent told her not to waste her time filling in the application as owner will not be considering any Centrelink applicants.

(Source: Vinnies/National Debt Hotline)

The following case study was provided to Shelter WA in May 2021 by ‘Meg, a 50 year old single parent sleeping in her car with a daughter with a disability’: “I am a single mother with a disabled child who have the landlord from hell. I have always paid my rent and bills before the due date. I am eligible for the $2000 Rent Relief Grant yet the real estate will not allow me and my disabled child to stay. They issued us with an eviction notice just for complaining to Consumer Protection about the toilet that would not flush. We got an eviction notice that same afternoon. At the court the horrible Registrar screwed up her face and said “Why have you not vacated?”
I explained I had applied for many houses but did not get a single response and explained they go for two-income families not single parents on a Carer’s pension. She was cold and heartless and was from Armadale Court.
I have no family in Perth and now need to live in my car with my child during the cold winter ahead. I have been on the Homeswest Priority waiting list and the manager told me “the houses have dried up”. When I went into the Department of Communities Housing Cannington branch yesterday the customer service person barked at me, saying “you are not the only one on the waiting list”. I have nowhere else to go and have no family in Perth and have to live in my car with my child. I contacted Entrypoint who referred me to Centrecare and Indigo who have no available emergency housing. When I asked them how long the waitlist was they said five years.
If our Emergency Crisis housing centers have a waitlist of five years why are they called Emergency Housing when you have no hope of getting anything from them?
Our young children should not have to sleep in cars. This is not a 3rd world country and I cannot believe people in their 50’s with young children under the age of 6 need to live in their cars after paying their taxes all these years.
It brings tears to my eyes to think I cannot house my child. I am not a no-hoper. I have an accounting degree and worked in government myself. I happen to find myself caring for my disabled child full-time and cannot work as I need to care for him. Hence the Carer’s pension. This State has a strong surplus yet the government watches on whilst children live on the streets or in cars or tents. There is an emergency crisis in our backyard. This government needs to do something fast.
This is a rich state and it is disgusting to treat West Australians with no dignity.
Please do something we beg you.
Thank you for listening.

‘Josie’ has been evicted due to rent arrears, even though she had been in property for two years, previously without fault. She had been issued the eviction notice and has been to Court. The magistrate has ordered herself and property manager to mediation to make suitable arrangements for the arrears. Her arrears total $12,000 which includes superficial damage that they wouldn’t allow her to remedy herself. Josie is currently couch surfing between friends’ homes. The property manager is calling her constantly demanding $1000 per week to clear the arrears and is also calling Josie’s adult children as they lived in property (but were not on the lease), demanding payment. Josie is due back in Court early June regarding mediation.

‘Sam’ is a single mother with 5 children, she receives a modest income from her casual job and family tax benefit. She has been living in the northern suburbs of Perth for all her life and has been in her rental for 3 years on a 12-month lease which ends in April 2021. She reluctantly agreed to a rent increase for another 6 months as the owner had indicated their desire to put the house on the market. Being on a low income, Sam has constant anxiety about her financial and housing situation. The rent increase of $60 per week has reduced her means to pay for other bills and she is slowly falling behind in her bills. On speaking with our ERAFS team, the worker assisted with a facilitated referral to a local based Financial Counsellor, assisted with a Foodbank referral to her closet Foodbank mobile service for affordable food and supported with information about her local emergency relief services should she need to access more support going forward. Sam was relieved to speak with someone who took the time to listen to her and point her in the right direction.

‘Rachel’ is a single mum receiving Centrelink. She has ongoing mental health issues and English is not her first language. Rachel was advised at the start of March she’d be getting a rent increase of $50 a week, but with the reduction of the COVID supplement payment she simply could not afford to pay it. Rachel has been forced to rent out one of the bedrooms to assist with the rental payment, which has had an impact on her teenage daughter as she does not want to live with a stranger in the house and she has now left the family home, now causing conflict within the family.

“I am a single female aged 43 who relocated from North Queensland to WA in 2020 for a job that I lost in March 2021. My rent was $500 a week up until this week when it rose an additional $40 to $540. That was already half of my income spent in rent for a 2-bedroom house  close to where my work was. Three days later (yesterday) I was given 30 days’ notice and a non-lease general email because the homeowner is selling the property. There’s nowhere to go, I am not from here – I don’t have family or friends to stay with. I also have pets.”

Shelly, June 2021 (Source: Shelter WA)

Keith’ is a 74-year-old gentleman who called us from Kalgoorlie where he was stuck, trying to find a place to live after being evicted from his property where he has lived for two and a half years. Keith didn’t have the money to get back to Perth and was so distraught he was threating to commit suicide. One of his friends put money in his account to drive to Queensland and has offered him a place to stay.