The ABC recently produced the following chart, showing the lack of social and public housing in Victoria.
As you can see, social housing accounted for only 3% of households in Victoria in 2023, significantly lower than the national average of 4%, which is considered poor by internationally.
“More than a third of Australians who are seeking homelessness support are living in Victoria, and yet we have the smallest proportion of social housing”, Deborah Di Natale from the peak body Council to Homeless Persons said.
“Is it any wonder we’re finding ourselves in the crisis we’re in?”
The Council for Homeless People recently cautioned that Victoria has approximately 30% more people in housing stress requesting assistance from homelessness programs than New South Wales or Queensland.
“These unprecedented levels of housing stress will increase homelessness unless we act urgently to build more social housing”, Council to Homeless Persons CEO Deborah Di Natale said.
“Victoria is desperately behind the rest of the country on public and community housing, with at least 6000 new homes needed each year for a decade as a bare minimum”.
“Rising rents and low vacancy rates are pushing people to the brink of homelessness”, Di Natale said.
According to the Herald-Sun, “Melbourne has become Australia’s youth homelessness capital with more than 15,000 needing help to keep a roof over their head”.
The surge in Victorian homelessness coincided with a 2.3 million population increase this century, with the state officially forecasting an additional 4.2 million by 2056.
As population growth outpaces supply, Victoria’s housing situation will worsen, forcing more people into homelessness.
With this background in mind, it was disturbing to read that public housing towers scheduled for demolition in Melbourne’s inner north will be replaced by developments with nearly 1000 more apartments but no public housing, the state government has announced.
The Racecourse Road Flemington site, which includes 120 Racecourse Road (with 180 public units) and 12 Holland Court (also with 180 public units) will be demolished to make way for 400 community housing rental units and 300 so-called affordable private rental units.
Community housing properties are owned, developed and maintained by not-for-profit organisations, rather than the state…
Victorian Public Tenants Association chief executive Katelyn Butterss said the lack of public housing was a major blow, given the most vulnerable people tend to live in public housing as community providers have the flexibility to choose their tenants…
Victoria has the nation’s lowest level of social housing as a proportion of overall housing stock. Public housing has slumped from a high of almost 4 per cent in 1994 to a low of about 2.4 per cent. The figure is about 2.9 per cent when community housing is included.
The Victorian government is more concerned with squandering $200 billion on the Suburban Rail Loop project and begging India for students than fulfilling basic state government responsibilities, such as public housing.
