Noosa’s State MP says the region’s crippling housing shortage and sky-high rents have created a “humanitarian crisis” as desperate local families are left with nowhere to live.
Independent member for Noosa Sandy Bolton said three to four families a day were appealing for help at her office after they had tried everything else and were on the verge of becoming homeless.
But Ms Bolton said emergency and affordable accommodation was so scarce that in many cases she was relying on her social networks to open their homes to people until a permanent roof could be found.
“That’s why I made a call out to my friends and personal networks to take them into their own homes,” said Ms Bolton.
“I have always made a commitment that we won’t have people sleeping in their car. If they come to me, they won’t be in a car, however long it takes to find them somewhere.”
Queensland’s housing crisis is coming under the spotlight for National Homelessness Week which runs from August 1 to 7, especially in places like the Sunshine Coast where more and more locals are being locked out of the private rental market.
On any given night in the Sunshine Coast region, St Vincent de Paul estimates about 890 people are facing homelessness.
Vinnies’ Sunshine Coast operations have supported more than 11,900 locals, including 5,300 children under 16, as of May 2021.
Noosa is currently the most expensive region in Queensland to rent, with the median for a three-bedroom house hitting $610 per week in the June quarter followed by the Gold Coast on $580/week and Brisbane City on $480/week.
But Ms Bolton said she was aware of individual cases of rents rising between 20 and 50 per cent — even as high as 80 per cent.
Sunshine Coast News on Thursday highlighted one example of a landlord pushing up the price of a four-bedroom modern home in a family neighbourhood by $580 per week — an 86 per cent jump.
Ms Bolton, who has written to the premier and housing minister about Noosa’s situation, has floated introducing legal caps on how much rents can be raised and called for an investigation into how this could be done.
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However, she said it was also important to balance protections for landlords to ensure people were still encouraged to invest in rental properties.
Ms Bolton said Noosa’s housing crisis was “pulling apart the fabric of the community” and had become worse since Christmas.
“I’m horrified by what’s going on,” said Ms Bolton, who has been working with the council and State Government to find solutions.
“I don’t think it’s unreasonable to call it a humanitarian crisis. What’s happening is truly catastrophic.
“The reality is we don’t have anywhere for them to go.”
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Ms Bolton said many of the residents who were bordering on living in their cars had been locals for decades and were an “essential part of the community”.
She said the region’s exorbitant rentals were out of the reach of many workers on hospitality wages but had also become too much for professionals such as teachers.
However, many tenants were too worried to complain or speak up about rent hikes in case they lost their bond or had a mark placed against their name, Ms Bolton said.
Ms Bolton said there were a host of organisations doing their best in Noosa, including the Department of Housing, charities and community housing providers but it was still not enough.
Vinnies Queensland CEO Kevin Mercer said more than 65,000 social housing properties would be needed in regional and rural areas over the next 15 years across Queensland.
Know your rights
The Rental Tenancy Authority (RTA) handles rental disputes and in the 2019-2020 financial year responded to 426,615 phone enquiries, including 30,786 COVID-19 related enquiries.
The RTA conciliated 19,882 disputes across Queensland through its free, impartial and independent service and resolved 74.1 per cent of all conciliated disputes where parties volunteered to participate.
The Act does not specify by how much rent can be increased but the RTA encourages tenants and property managers/owners to discuss the proposed increase.
“If a tenant feels the rent increase is excessive, they should discuss this with the property manager/owner,” said an RTA spokesperson.
“If the tenant still feels it is excessive after the discussion, they can dispute it through the RTA’s free dispute resolution service after accepting and agreeing to the increase.
“They may also apply to the Queensland Civil and Administration Tribunal (QCAT) for a decision.”
In the 2020-21 financial year, QCAT received 11,611 complaints state-wide.
Outreach services on the Coast
The Sunshine Coast Council is joining outreach providers to shine a light on the challenges faced by vulnerable community members and provide support information across the region.
An outreach program will deliver a range of services, support and information from next week, highlighting the help that is available to Sunshine Coast people.
The program will be delivered by Sunshine Coast Housing and Homelessness Network and supported by Sunshine Coast Council.
No registration is required to attend the following information sessions from 10am-2pm:
• Nambour Community Centre, 2 Shearer St, Nambour, on 5 August
• Caloundra Community Centre, 58A Queen St, Caloundra, on 10 August
• Maleny Neighbourhood Centre, 17 Bicentenary Lane, Maleny, on 12 August.
In addition to attending the information sessions, anyone experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness, including experiencing domestic and family violence, can call:
- Homelessness Hotline: 1800 474 753
- DVConnect: 1800 811 811.
For more information on housing and support services available on the Sunshine Coast, view the Housing and Homelessness Directory, visit www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/Living-and-Community/Community-Safety/Homelessness
