Housing data shows people are waiting 90 weeks for housing

More people are waiting for a public housing property this year than last and they are waiting longer to move in but the government says its initiatives will see the situation ease.

THE number of people waiting for public housing in Tasmania has increased by 170 in the last 12 months and they are waiting longer to move in, the latest Communities Tasmania Housing Dashboard says.

At the same time, the private rental market continues to constrict with Burnie the State’s toughest place to get a house.

The dashboard shows the average wait for public housing in July last year was 70.1 weeks.

That has now blown out to 89.8 weeks.

“However, with around 1200 new long-term homes expected to be delivered by June 30, 2023, this proportion should decrease,” the dashboard says.

The private rental vacancy rate remained steady in Hobart over the 12 months (0.6 per cent) while the Launceston market improved (one per cent) and Burnie fell slightly (0.2 per cent).

Rentals have also risen dramatically.

Labor’s Ella Haddad said that statewide, median rents had increased 10 per cent in the past year with the west coast, central coast and north east regions particularly hard hit.

And on Hobart’s eastern shore, median rents for three-bedroom properties have jumped 13 per cent.

Labor’s Ella Haddad said that statewide, median rents had increased 10 per cent in the past year with the west coast, central coast and north east regions particularly hard hit. Picture: David Killick

Ms Haddad said the data showed Tasmania’s housing crisis was worsening.

“It is now taking the best part of two years for the highest priority social housing applicants to be provided with a place to live,” Ms Haddad said.

“When the Liberals were elected in 2014, it took just 21 weeks.

“And while people wait they are sleeping rough, couch surfing, pitching tents or living in other insecure and unsafe conditions.”

The government’s new Homes Tasmania Bill 2022 and Homes Tasmania (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2022 has now passed the House of Assembly.

The Bill, which replaces the Homes Act 1935, has been shaped by feedback from the housing, homelessness and building and construction sectors

Homes Tasmania will have an asset base of $3.5b and powers to leverage those assets to increase the supply of housing for Tasmanians, the government said.

Tasmania’s population is increasing fast with the ABS revising its estimates for the state to be almost 30,000 higher than previously estimated (540,839 at the end of September 2021 to 569,827 in December 2021).

The Burnie suburb of Shorewell near where the government will be more public housing

The dashboard showed that since the launch of the Affordable Housing Strategy, there have been 1449 new long-term homes built including 336 in the past year.

There has also been 45 lots of land released in the past year but no new units of

homeless accommodation coming into the system.

“There are works currently underway on further subdivisions at Huntingfield, Rokeby and Burnie and more than 100 units of homeless accommodation are either contracted or under construction,” the department reported.

The department said almost 90 per cent of all applicants on the Housing Register are currently in secure or temporary accommodation.