State and Federal Commitments to Social Housing
YIMBY QLD supports more housing in different forms as a means to improve housing affordability and promote intergenerational equity in property. Housing is a vital social determinant of health that is informed by multiple factors, including housing quality, the immediate environment, socio-economic attributes and affordability.
Housing unaffordability has dour ramifications on both physical and mental dimensions of health.
- Substance abuse and alcoholism are largely interlinked with housing stress as both a cause and a consequence. Those who have endured displacement are particularly vulnerable to drug and alcohol abuse as a coping mechanism.
- Low-income and crowded households enduring housing stress have significantly worsened risk of child hospitalizations.
- Mothers enduring housing stress and eviction are more likely to display parenting stress and symptoms of depression.
- Eviction is regarded as a significant contributor to suicide.
- Enduring homelessness can reduce life expectancy by 30 years.
(Council to Homeless Persons, 2021; Australian Institute of Family Studies, 2008; Downing, 2016; Ortiz & Johannes, 2018)
With Australia amid a housing crisis, 640,000 households are enduring housing stress, according to UNSW’s City Futures Research Centre. Looking forward, the situation appears equally bleak, with projections of 940,000 households to endure housing stress by 2041.
Waitlists for social housing have skyrocketed by 78% since 2018, now containing 31,000 households. Social housing comprises less than 4% of Queensland’s housing supply and has progressively dwindled since its 6% slice in the 1990s. As housing unaffordability worsens, the dearth of social housing may condemn many to crowding, couch surfing or even homelessness.
What’s Needed
Delivering social and affordable housing is imperative to provide shelter from the wrath of Australia’s housing crisis.
Social housing spans a diverse continuum, including government or community provided housing and specialist homelessness services, intending to cater for a range of specialized needs. These include disability, crisis support, women and families subject to domestic and family violence, those at risk of homelessness and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Ensuring shelter, safety and stability for those most vulnerable provides a platform for participation in society and greater health, educational and social outcomes.
The Budget
YIMBY QLD welcomes the latest State and Federal Government budget allocations for social and affordable housing. The Federal Government have recently announced a $2 billion investment in social housing to be allocated by state and territory governments. It is intended for the funding to be spread across the next two years, directed at new builds or refurbishing existing uninhabitable housing supply. Prime Minister Albanese’s announcement is additional to the proposed $10 billion Housing Affordability Future Fund, which is currently subject of Senate debate. Promises for an annual minimum of $500 million in social and affordable housing spend are a welcome outcome from the negotiations.
The recent Queensland Budget included significant provisions for social and affordable housing, including:
- $2 billion for the commencement of 5,600 social and affordable homes by 2027;
- $1.1 billion in increased funding to deliver 3,625 social housing commencements by 2025;
- Over $250 million for housing and homeless support services; and
- Build-to-rent concessions for eligible developments providing at least 10% as affordable dwellings at discounted rent.
We applaud the recent investment in social and affordable housing and hope for its continuation, beyond the context of a housing crisis. Social and affordable housing are a vital typology in the housing continuum, and maintaining its supply is imperative to vulnerable populations in society.
Reference links:
Over 640,000 Australian households in housing stress, analysis using census data shows – ABC News
Australia’s housing crisis: how did we get here and where to now? (uq.edu.au)State Infrastructure Strategy Social and Affordable Housing (statedevelopment.qld.gov.au)
