Gold Coast's low vacancy rate causes Pacific Pines renting family to contemplate splitting up

A Gold Coast mother-of-nine searching for a house is living a "nightmare" after being rejected 70 times. HOW THE RENTAL CRISIS IS DESTROYING LIVES

• HOME SAFETY VISITS FOR AT-RISK COAST CHILD TO STOP 
• CHARITY SAYS ‘TOUGH LOVE’ NEEDED FOR TEEN CRIMS

TANIA Chaplain’s life is a “nightmare”.

The Pacific Pines teacher has 21 days to find a roof for her family of eight, but she’s not hopeful having already been turned down 70 times.

“It hit me overnight,” she said.

“There is so much to do and our daughter is getting married in less than two weeks. It’s a nightmare.

“The worst-case scenario for us would mean half of us having to move to my disabled mum’s three-bedroom house on the north side of Brisbane, which would mean changing schools, jobs and leaving the network of friends we have here and putting our things in storage.

Chris and Tania Chaplain can't find a house big enough to rent for six of their nine children, from left Luke 13, Ava 4, Zoe, 4, Sophie, 11, Annalise, 11, and Phoebe, 9. Picture Glenn Hampson.

“Every weekend since we found out our landlord was selling we’ve dragged our kids around house inspections.

“Each time it’s a waste of time. It is very exhausting and disheartening.

“I think the size of our family is causing owners to turn us down time and time again.”

The Gold Coast vacancy rate has fallen below 1 per cent, putting pressure on the already shrinking supply of rental properties, and the city’s homeless and lower income families are struggling to keep a roof over their heads.

Meanwhile, investors are cashing in on record house prices and selling up their rental properties, leaving low income families scrambling to secure a house.

Mrs Chaplain has nine children but only six are moving with the family. Her 19-year-old is moving in with her older brother to increase the family’s chances of being offered a house.

For seven years the family has rented the same place, the owner happy to accommodate the large family because his wife grew up in one.

Their budget is $550 a week, a big jump from what they’re paying now, but Mrs Chaplain said it still wasn’t enough to compete with “people from southern states and returned citizens coming back from overseas”.

“My husband is looking for work, so being a single income family we can’t spend $700-800 a week,” she said.

“We were prepared to pay double rent for up to eight weeks if we had to.”

Mrs Chaplain is having to look at houses during the weekdays, further reducing the family’s single income.

After nearly two months of searching for a four bedroom house for their family, Chris and Tania Chaplain are at their wits' end.

“We are seeing the same people time after time at inspections. You can apply for some properties without looking at them but most you need to go to the inspections,” she said.

“When we go to house inspections there are usually at least 20 other groups of people there, a couple of times there’s been around 40.”

The children are schooled in Ormeau and Mrs Chaplain teaches in Southport, but they’ll live anywhere from Shailer Park, out to Waterford and down to Helensvale.

The family almost got a house but lost it after someone offered a year’s rent upfront. This was $25,000.

“I have overheard people at inspections talking to the agents offering $100 to $200 more per week for the rent – we just can’t compete with that.”

Mrs Chaplain has posted on every community page and created a prospectus of her family.

“We’ve never missed a rental payment and always pass rental inspections – we just need someone to give a large family a go.”

Coast families torn apart by rental crisis

March 22, 2021

THE city’s rental crisis is tearing families apart, robbing couples of their life savings and forcing debt upon locals already struggling to make ends meet.

It comes as the COVID-induced property boom favours investors and pushes long-term renters out of their properties.

They are struggling to afford rents that real estate agents are advising owners they can get off cashed-up arrivals from southern states.Here are the heartbreaking accounts from the faces of the Gold Coast rental crisis.

PREGNANT AND HOMELESS: Property manager Blanche Manby plans on forking out $24,000 to secure a rental. She and fiance Chris Murray were made homeless four days before settlement of a house they went unconditional on after the bank pulled their finance. They’d already secured new tenants for their rental so had to move belongings to a storage shed and are crashing with Ms Manby’s parents.

A pregnant Blanche Manby and her partner Chris Murray outside their storage shed where they've had to move all their possessions because they can't get a rental property. Their bank pulled finance at the last minute and now they have nowhere to go like hundreds of other Gold Coasters. Picture Glenn Hampson

The pair are now looking in the upper bracket of $950 – which fewer people can afford – and the couple plan to offer six months rent at that rate. “Our little girl is due to arrive any time between now and the next six weeks and she’s been diagnosed with a condition called gastroschisis and will need immediate surgery and likely spend the first few weeks of her life in the neonatal intensive care unit.”

SINGLE PARENT: Rachel Sovereign said agents told her she doesn’t meet their income means testing policy, despite providing bank statements to the contrary. During one inspection an agent told her there were 100 people in line for a $440-a-week apartment. “When I went to check on my application, they said I would no longer be considered as in the process the rent had now gone up to $550. The industry and homeowners are taking innocent renters for a ride and it’s despicable and disgraceful.”

$16,000 UPFRONT: Billie Inglis has lived on the Gold Coast 30 years, with a perfect rental history, but had to put $16,000 upfront to secure a house. “My heart breaks for the families that don’t have a bit of savings. The worst thing about it is most families have no idea the bidding going on when they put in applications. It’s very scary and stressful for families. So much for taking care of the locals. Life is changing and changing fast.”

The Gold Coast's rental crisis is leaving hundreds of locals without a house to live in, with many paying tens of thousands in advance to secure a property.

BLOWS BUDGET Kasey Vessey said after separating from her children’s dad during COVID lockdowns she applied for more than 20 properties within a two-week period. “Some people at inspections were offering a year’s rent, some offered to pay more a week. It was crazy and I had no chance but to make my budget higher for something small. I now live in a four-bedroom townhouse and pay $850 a fortnight.”

SECRET TACTICS: Martina Mošna said she researched what Sydney and Melbourne people were doing to secure a home on the Gold Coast and found they were offering more money, paying rent in advance and applying for houses without viewing them. She did all of these things and a week later she was offered a property. “I found it unfair big time, but of course we accepted it.”

LIVING WITH PARENTS: Iesha Taraboulsi said her family of five looked for six months before moving in with her mum where they stayed for 18 months and saved to build in Mudgeeraba. “We pay similar to what you would for a rental for our own house. We also have now managed to buy an investment property and haven’t increased our rent for two years. If we do it would be small – we know how ruthless it is out there.”

Blanche Manby and her partner Chris Murray are homeless because their finance fell through and they'd already found someone to take over their rental. Picture Glenn Hampson

HAVING TO SETTLE: Cahris Mahney moved from Perth and her family have spent $1600 at a caravan park and are staying with family in Brisbane until their rental is available in April. “We’ve had to offer a higher price from our budget and settle for a suburb that wasn’t on top of our list. We also were applying online without viewing as viewing inspections were even being cancelled due to people putting in an application before the viewing.”

LEAVES HUSBAND Samantha Frances Stone said after three months of non-stop inspections and applications, offering more rent and rent in advance she is moving 1400km away to live with her parents. “My partner will continue working on the Gold Coast and find a share house. We have three kids and I feel like that wasn’t desirable for owners. Pretty devastating. I tried everything I could. I even created an appealing promotional-style preliminary application to try to get in early.”

SIX-MONTH SEARCH Mich Prizeman is a single mum of two who had no luck despite offering six months rent upfront for the past five months. She’s in Southport but needs a place near Yatala as her son has a scholarship up there. “I’ve been applying without inspecting the property. Working part time for the same company for nine years and studying full time. I sold my investment property last March and have a great rental history.”

PAY RENT CAN’T AFFORD: Hayley Furer’s rent increased by $25 a week and she considered moving but “didn’t want to risk it because there is so little out there” plus they wanted to be close to their daughter’s daycare. “We can’t afford the increase, my partner lost his job due to COVID, but we also can’t afford to be homeless, it’s tough.”

A lack of vacancies on the Gold Coast, caused by a property boom whereby people from southern states are moving to the city, is causing a crisis for local renters.

SCARY TIME: Rebecca Ann Cooper, her two children, her brother and a friend have squeezed into her parents’ three-bedroom house and are grateful for a roof over their heads. “I hear from some sources that offering money upfront can go against you … but then, if you don’t, how do you secure a place. It is an extremely scary and uncertain time for a lot of families. I’ve been a sole parent for 10 years and I’ve never not had a secure roof over my children’s heads. It is quite soul destroying. Are the people down south not getting the news about the crisis here? They just keep coming but there are no homes and not enough jobs. It’s madness.”

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Chris and Tania Chaplain can't find a house big enough to rent for six of their nine children, from left Luke 13, Ava 4, Zoe, 4, Sophie, 11, Annalise, 11, and Phoebe, 9. Picture Glenn Hampson.