Adelaide rental crisis forces widowed mum and twin sons on to friend’s couch

A landlord’s decision to sell-up has left a young mum and her twins homeless after they were dumped from Housing SA’s list during their desperate search for a roof.

A northeastern suburbs widow and her five-year-old twin sons have been forced to sleep on a friend’s couch after they were unable to secure a house during Adelaide’s continuing rental crisis.

Amy Savage and her sons Cash and Cruz had been desperately trying to find rental accommodation in their local area after their landlord in June advised they were selling up so she and the boys had to vacate their Ridgehaven property.

The Advertiser reported in early July that Ms Savage, 30, had attended about 20 open inspections but, at the time, had no luck securing a new house.

At the time, figures showed fewer than one per cent of Adelaide’s rental housing stock was vacant.

The newspaper previously reported in 2017 that Ms Savage’s partner took his own life when Cash and Cruz were only five weeks old. She was later diagnosed with leukaemia but has since gone into remission.

Originally Ms Savage and her boys were to be out of the Ridgehaven house by August 8 but she was grateful the landlord extended this to August 19 to give her some extra time to find a house.

Amy Savage with her sons Cruz and Cash. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Unfortunately, she was unable to find a new home so she and her boys are now crashing at a friend’s Redwood Park house until they can find a more permanent solution.

In another blow to the family, Ms Savage discovered that she had been taken off the Housing SA waiting list for public housing.

She signed up seven years ago but found out during her househunt that Housing SA removed her from the list in 2019.

“Apparently they contact you to find out whether you still need to be on (the list) and then you have to respond to them,” she said.

“I never received any correspondence. When I was first told that I was taken off the list the lady … (said) it was likely because we didn’t have your current details, which is (untrue) because they paid the bond … for the (Ridgehaven) house … so they most certainly did have my details.”

She had now been placed back on the list and classed as category one, which is for people with the most urgent housing needs.

“But (I was told) even with category one, I’m potentially looking at a five-year wait,” Ms Savage said.

She said Housing SA advised her to contact the Homelessness Gateway – a service that connects people in crisis to advice, services and emergency accommodation – for assistance.

“I know of three families that have lived in motels for more than three months,” she said.

“They spend all this money on motels and stuff. How are the funds not being directed into housing?”

Housing stock in Noarlunga Downs. Picture: Brenton Edwards

Ms Savage suggested Housing SA could create more public housing by subdividing and developing some of its larger properties.

“We’re not asking for much – We just want a roof over our heads,” she said.

Opposition human services spokeswoman Nat Cook said no one should be forced to sleep on a couch as a long-term housing solution.

“Cuts to frontline staff in the South Australian Housing Authority is leaving them without the resources to be effective in the housing crisis as we see it today,” she said.

A Housing SA spokeswoman said there were “very few vacant properties in the suburbs the customer has requested”.

“We are encouraging her to widen her preference for housing beyond these areas to increase her chances of being offered a property,” she said.

“She is Category One on the housing register, the most urgent category, and the average wait time for a property for people who are in Category 1 and have been allocated housing, is six months.”

The spokeswoman said Housing SA would continue to work with Ms Savage to support her in finding a private rental or a Housing SA property.