Queensland Council of Social Service reveals Gold Coast residents waiting longest of any metro LGA for social housing
Gold Coasters in desperate need of housing are being forced to wait up to three years - the longest of any anywhere in southeast Queensland.
Gold Coast
Don't miss out on the headlines from Gold Coast. Followed categories will be added to My News.
GOLD Coasters in desperate need of housing are being forced to wait up to three years, the longest in southeast Queensland.
The Glitter Strip has the longest wait time of any metro council area in Queensland and the longest wait time in the state’s southeast, according to data analysis from the Queensland Council of Social Service (QCOSS).
Residents were waiting 36.1 months on average for housing.
2020 register data has recorded an increase of 48 per cent (from 24.4 months) in 2019.
The Queensland average wait time is 24.3 months.
QCOSS CEO Aimee McVeigh said: “While we did see a commendable $1.9b invested by the state government into social housing in this year’s budget, those funds will build 260 new dwellings on the Gold Coast over the next four years.
“(This figure) is dwarfed by the 3104 families in need on the waitlist today.
She added: “We need all levels of government to come together and solve this crisis collectively.”
Ms McVeigh will meet with community service providers on the Gold Coast on Monday to discuss plans for improving the “wellbeing and resilience” of those who rely on social housing.
There area 3104 families on the Gold Coast social housing register, up from 1749 families in 2017.
There are now more people receiving JobSeeker and Youth Allowance payments on the Gold Coast than when the pandemic began in 2020 (up from 22,104 to 29,991 in June 2021).
The state government announced last month the first tenants had been chosen for a $12.3 million youth homelessness accommodation hub on the Gold Coast.
It also tripled its commitment to social housing in June’s state budget to $2.9 billion over the next four years.
QCOSS previously called for the government to spend $496 million to stem a “tsunami” of homelessness overtaking the city. QCOSS, Master builders and the Property Council have also demanded immediate fast-tracking of social homes statewide.
Bulletin reports since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic have detailed a growing homelessness crisis, including a surge of people sleeping rough in the city’s party precinct of Surfers Paradise and heartbreaking scenes of tent cities in popular parks.
Greens senator Larissa Waters revealed earlier this year the party plans to clear the waitlist within four years.
She said in July: “We’ve seen there is not enough long-term, affordable homes, there’s not enough housing, there’s not enough rentals.
“Importantly, there’s not enough crisis housing either.
“So no matter whether you’re needing a shelter fleeing from domestic violence there’s no crisis housing, let alone affordable long-term housing (on the Gold Coast).”
SEQ school bans student promposals, threatens suspension
An elite secondary school has banned students from ‘promposing’ to their dates for formal, with one student threatened with suspension.
Man charged with horror hammer attack on motorsport identity
A man has been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged attack on racing car driver Chris Pappas at his Gold Coast home, leaving him in a serious condition.