Advocates plea for Queenslanders to improve rental stock

Leading advocates have pleaded with Queenslanders to pitch in to help ease critical shortage of homes across the state, with only nine homes currently available in the whole of Brisbane for people on income support.

Leading advocates have pleaded with Queenslanders to put unused properties on the rental market amid the state’s shortage of available homes after a new report highlighted the severe lack of affordable houses for those on low incomes.

The Rental Affordability Snapshot from Anglicare Australia revealed there were only nine rooms available in sharehouses across Brisbane for those on income support.

It also found there were only 82 homes among nearly 3000 properties available on the market that were appropriate for those on minimum wage.

The findings are the latest in a string of alarming reports that have detailed the scale of the crisis.

Karyn Walsh, chief executive at homeless advocacy Micah Projects, said the demand for services was at “crunch point” as the number of people in insecure housing rises and the lack of supply continues.

“If people are sitting on empty properties, I just encourage them to put them up for rent,” she said.

Housing supply across Queensland is at critical levels. Picture: NCA NewsWire / John Gass

“The whole community needs to consider what we want for addressing housing and homelessness, and part of it is to give people a place to live at affordable rents.

“If people can afford to have their apartments sitting empty, then surely they could afford to put them up for rent at an affordable rate.”

Ms Walsh said the number of properties on short stay websites such as Airbnb had decreased and acknowledged the act was a source of income for many but said “it would be great if they weren’t” used for that purpose.

“I think people need to think about it, and we need to think about the incentives people need,” she said.

Anglicare South Queensland chief executive Sue Cooke said the results of the organisation’s snapshot was “the worst conditions we have ever found” and stressed “there is something we can all do as individuals in society”.

“We need the availability, that is the biggest issue — there’s just not enough stock,” she said.

“We all need to be thinking, as members of society, what do we have?

“What do we have that’s available? Turn our minds to what we might be able to free up to put into the market.

“There’s the affordability issue for those on low income, but then there’s the availability of supply.”

Housing Minister Leeanne Enoch said the “entire country is experiencing significant housing pressures and Queensland is no different”.

She agreed with the advocates that increasing supply is critical to getting more Queenslander into a home.

“To complement our record investment (on social housing), we encourage any property owner with vacant properties to consider opening them up on the private rental market,” she said.

“The Department of Communities and Housing offers a range of services and products to support property owners seeking to make their property available to the market.”

Originally published as Advocates plea for Queenslanders to improve rental stock