Perth renters are recording nearly unlivable temperatures inside their homes, affecting their health and the ability to use their home, according to new research.
More than 100 tenants tracked temperatures and humidity in their homes as part of a report for advocacy group Better Renting, released on Tuesday.
Perth sweltered through record-breaking heatwaves this summer.Credit: WAtoday
Temperatures inside tenants’ homes peaked at 37 degrees and 83 per cent relative humidity.
The report found this summer was particularly challenging for renters, with many struggling with the cost of living following record increases in rents and the cost of basic essentials.
A low vacancy rate meant renters who had moved were also more likely to accept substandard accommodation.
Perth disability pensioner Claire Phelan lives with her partner in community housing.
“I don’t invite people here because it’s humiliating that I have to live like this”
Claire Phelan
Her home has draughts and lacks proper insulation, which contributes to the rising heat inside, and she was forced to issue a breach notice to her housing provider after months of waiting for urgent safety repairs.
“After four years in this hovel dealing with the unbearable heat, among other problems, I am so mentally exhausted,” she said.
“I’ve gone way past depression into pervasive numbness with bouts of anxiety so intense I can barely sleep.
“I waited through 10 years of housing insecurity and homelessness for this, and if I’d known back then this is how I’d end up I wouldn’t have bothered persevering in survival.”
Phelan said the heat made her chronic illnesses worse.
“I feel weak, fatigued, light-headed, dehydrated,” she said.
“I can’t use my body at all without risk of losing consciousness due to postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.
“Each time the temperature fluctuates dramatically, like during heatwaves, it triggers my chronic migraine, and I’ll have migraines for weeks at a time.”
Phelan said spending more on cooling down her home meant less money for groceries, fuel, socialising and healthcare.
“My energy bills are a nightmare because I can’t go without cooling. My community housing provider put in our lease agreement that putting foil on the windows is a breach of the agreement … I don’t invite people here because it’s humiliating that I have to live like this,” she said.
Better Renting director Joel Dignam said indoor temperatures higher than 25 degrees were cause for concern because of the effect it had on sleep and other health conditions.
“The overall picture across Australia is that it’s been pretty grim, and this was a hotter summer than the last two summers, which is reflected in the data,” he said.
“Overnight you’re well past the healthy threshold for sleep at that point. Ideally, you’d have a home sitting around 21 degrees. But at 25 degrees, you’re out of that comfort zone.
“We find renters are spending a lot of time out of that comfort zone.”
This summer’s report will be the organisation’s last. Dignam said he felt Better Renting had built up a body of work which effectively communicated the scale of the issue.
“What we’re trying to say is renters are already having a bad time, and it’s just going to get worse,” he said.
“I think at some point we’d be flogging a dead horse, and we’ve pretty clearly established there’s a problem here, so we want to move to solving that problem.”
REIA president Leanne Pilkington said housing standards would improve around the country as states and territories updated minimum standards.
“It’s more of a focus now than ever before. The summers are getting warmer, and I just opened my electricity bill and it’s $400 more than the last,” she said.
“Everything is getting more expensive, including electricity. It’s much more top of mind than it was 12 months ago.”
Currently, only the ACT and Victoria have minimum rental standards related to energy performance, with Victoria planning to expand existing standards this year to cover ceiling insulation and cooling appliances.
The federal government has also been funding energy performance retrofits in social housing through the Household Energy Upgrades Fund.
with Jim Malo and Kate Burke
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