Older women on the frontline of housing affordability crisis

That troubling trend has prompted Mission Australia to launch a new campaign calling for donations and community support to help older women find a safe home.

Mission Australia CEO Sharon Callister said it was of huge concern that older women were at the forefront of Australia’s housing and homelessness emergency.

She said older women often have lower retirement savings and superannuation than men and many don't own their own home.

This means late-in-life shocks such as health scares, job loss or divorce can hit hard and leave them particularly vulnerable to homelessness.

“Older women may not be able to afford the next rent increase or interest rate hike,” said Ms Callister.

“A health scare or other change in circumstance can be disastrous for them. These are women who may have worked and cared for others throughout their lives but are left isolated and vulnerable as they age.”

Ms Callister said amid the continuing cost-of-living crisis, Mission Australia’s homelessness services had seen an 83% increase in women over the age of 55 seeking assistance over the past three years.

“Our frontline staff across the country work hard to support everyone who comes through their doors, but the ongoing housing emergency makes it challenging to find secure, long-term housing for people in need,” she said.

“We need continued, significant investment in social and affordable housing to ensure that older women have access to safe and secure housing and the support they need to remain in their homes and communities and age with dignity.”

Mission Australia runs more than 465 programs and services and has 2,200 staff working to end homelessness in Australia and help people and communities.

Ms Callister said donations from the public would help those frontline workers continue to provide quality support, compassion, and care for people at their time of need.

“I hope those who can, [will] consider donating to help women who are struggling to keep themselves safe and housed.”

The campaign to help older women put a roof over their heads comes as new research reveals that Australians earning the lowest incomes have been effectively priced out of the rental market across the nation.

This is despite the federal government’s recent 10% increase to commonwealth rent assistance.

The Priced Out report from Everybody’s Home revealed that in all capital cities and most regional areas, people who primarily rely on Centrelink payments or earn the full-time minimum wage are likely to be experiencing severe rental stress.

Launched in 2018, Everybody’s Home is a national campaign backed by a coalition of housing, homelessness and welfare organisations dedicated to ensuring all Australians have a safe and decent place to live.

Campaign spokesperson Maiy Azize said that without urgent action to address housing affordability – including a huge boost to social housing – the problem would only get worse.

“People on the lowest incomes are falling through the cracks – they’re becoming homeless, share housing well into their adult years, living in overcrowded homes, and unable to move out of the family home because there simply isn’t enough affordable housing for them,” she said.

“Even if they are willing to leave their communities, the pursuit to find and secure an affordable home elsewhere is dire.”

Ms Azize said government payments such as Jobseeker were falling short of what people actually needed and were instead being eclipsed by high rents, bills, and the cost of essential goods.

“We need the federal government to raise Centrelink payments, so they don’t fall below the poverty line, and set these payments so they don’t fall behind the real cost of living and housing.”

Ms Azize said the current social housing shortfall of 640,000 dwellings would increase to more than one million over the next two decades – a problem that would not be solved by relying on the private market.

“This desperate need for social housing doesn’t go away by hoping the private market will make homes affordable. That is the status quo, and it is clearly failing.

“To make housing more affordable for more Australians, the federal government must increase Centrelink payments, protect renters from unfair rent increases, scrap unfair tax handouts to property investors, and create much more social housing."