Affordable rental market in Darebin hits “crisis” levels, new data shows

THE rental market is becoming unaffordable even to those with full-time jobs, and the peak body for homelessness warns Melbourne’s stock of affordable rentals has fallen to “crisis” levels.

DAREBIN’S rental market is becoming unaffordable even to those with full-time jobs, and the peak body for homelessness warns Melbourne’s stock of affordable one and two-bedroom rentals has fallen to “crisis” levels.

The Council to Homeless Persons’ analysis of the latest rental data shows over the past 10 years the number of affordable one-bedroom rentals has fallen to zero, and the number of affordable two-bedroom rentals has plummeted from 47 to just nine.

Haven; Home, Safe offer housing support services in Preston and say they’re dealing with more people than ever, and from demographics people don’t typically associate with homelessness.

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HHS executive director Trudi Ray said there had been a 19 per cent increase in people accessing homelessness services since 2017-18, and 1200 clients now passed through their doors every month.

“Rental in Darebin is unaffordable for those who are unemployed, but even those with a full time job are struggling,” Ms Ray said.

“More people are accessing private rental assistance. People employed like a couple with children need help with establishment, in paying for a bond and rent in advance. A lot of people just can’t afford that.”

The CHP analysis based affordability on whether a Newstart recipient, or person with comparable income, could live there.

The data, obtained from the Department of Health and Human Services, showed the median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Darebin had increased on average 5.8 per cent per year over the past ten years, and Thornbury had skyrocketed at an increase of 11.1 per cent per year.

FIGURES SHOW ZERO AFFORDABLE ONE BEDROOM RENTALS

The median rent for a three-bedroom house had jumped 9.1 per cent per year over the same time period, with Northcote’s now up to a massive $650 per week.

The data showed there were only 18 one-bedroom affordable rentals across metropolitan Melbourne.

The areas which had none were Darebin, Frankston, Greater Dandenong, Moonee Valley, Casey and Cardinia.

CHO chief executive Jenny Smith said outer suburban areas were slipping out of the grasp of low-income earners.

“People move further out to chase cheaper rent, but just face fiercer competition from other low-income earners and young people saving for deposits to buy, for a shrinking pool of low-cost rentals,” Ms Smith said.

Trudi Ray said HHS staff were seeing more complex cases of homelessness including those with domestic and family violence issues, refugees and people with mental health issues.

And while the focus was often on the homeless problem in the city, more people were starting to sleep rough in the northern suburbs.

“We can’t help everybody, we don’t have anywhere to put them or there is nowhere suitable for them to go,” Ms Ray said.

“There’s just not enough funding to cover everything all the time.”