Oct 13 2024
/
Time to step up on the housing crisis
Port Phillip is in the grip of a deep housing crisis.
There are many dimensions, most especially affordability, availability, diversity and liveability.
Over time, Australia has moved from seeing access to decent housing as a human right to a commodity that we buy and sell in the market.
In the areas of health, education and transport, we haven’t done that. In those areas, we recognise the need for public action and provision to maintain affordability and to ensure good access to these vital aspects of life.
But we have managed to turn housing into a game of profit and loss with huge consequences for people and communities.
In Port Phillip, nearly one in three renting households and one in six mortgage holders are experiencing housing stress. That means people are paying more than 30% of their income towards their housing costs.
Fifty percent of all local households are renting, including 44% in the private rental market (compared with 29% across Melbourne).
Median rents for long term tenants (12 months or so) have increased over the past year by:
- $100 per week in Albert Park/Middle Park/West St Kilda
- $75 per week in South Melbourne
- $60 per week in St Kilda
- $55 per week in East St Kilda
- $50 per week in Elwood
- $50 per week in Port Melbourne
Currently there is a shortfall of 6600 affordable dwellings in Port Phillip: this is expected to double over the next 20 years.
It’s a vital issue for our next Council. Increasingly, Commonwealth and state governments are making their investments in housing dependent on local government, the private sector and community housing agencies partnering up.
What should a new Council do?
- Encourage more community housing for long term local residents. Too many older locals are being forced out of our community by rising rents. Actively partner with other levels of government and local housing agencies through investing $1m per year in a housing reserve and making surplus Council land available for new projects
- Tackle the drift of rental properties into short term tourist stays. comcurrently lists 3000 properties available for short term stays in Port Phillip. This is about 12 percent of all the listings for Melbourne. More than 80 per cent are for entire apartments or houses. Councils have new powers to rebalance the tenancy market. Let’s use them!
- Invest further in Port Phillip Zero – that works to place people experiencing homelessness directly into permanent and safe housing with ‘wrap around’ support services, such as mental health and alcohol and drug support, to address complex needs
- Targeted rent assistance. Support vulnerable renters through improved access to legal and tenant advice services and other assistance
- Targeted rate relief. Continue Port Phillip’s leading edge rate relief program of payment plans, rate deferrals and modest rebates for financially stressed owners.
Housing needs to be front and centre in the next Council.