By Abbey Cannan
A rent hike of $115 per week is what renters on the Sunshine Coast have recently copped to the chin.
I’m one of those many renters who will be saying goodbye to pilates and avocado toast while on the verge of homelessness.
In a 2017 headline, The Guardian wrote, Millionaire tells millennials: if you want a house, stop buying avocado toast.
In a plot twist, avocados are now cheaper than chips, selling for just $1. So, I guess I’ll still have the luxury of eating avocado toast while living in a tent.
Everybody’s Home national spokesperson, Kate Colvin, said the compounding impact of spiking rents and stagnant wages was smashing living standards and putting people at risk of homelessness.
“We know that rental stress is the gateway to homelessness,” Kate Colvin said.
“When you combine surging rents with flat wages, you put people in a financial vice. For the past three years that vice has been tightening.
“Homelessness providers are reporting stories of families with full time breadwinners being forced to live in tents. In a wealthy nation like Australia, this is nothing short of a national disgrace.
“The recent change of Government represents an opportunity for a reset. For a decade, construction of new social and affordable housing has withered. Now is the time to get moving and give people on low and modest incomes genuine choice.“
A journalist’s wage definitely falls into the low and modest income bracket, so if I wasn’t living in a share house, the rent would almost chew up my whole pay cheque.
Is the glamorous waterfront home that I live in worth that amount of money? Yes, of course this prime real estate would be worth us not being able to save a dollar for our future. Except, I live in a tiny townhouse in an estate that definitely isn’t walking distance to the beach, and close to an hour’s drive to get to work in Noosa. But, am I grateful to have a roof over my head? Certainly!
New analysis of rental data by the Everybody’s Home campaign to coincide with Homelessness Week revealed the Queensland regions where renters are hardest hit by the toxic combination of surging increases and stagnant wages.
The three year analysis cross references SQM rental data with wage growth for workers in retail or health care and social assistance and rental increases.
Workers in those occupations saw average wages increase only 2.3 per cent annually over three years.
But over the three years leading up to 22 July, 2022, Sunshine Coast’s average rent surged 12.1 per cent each year, reaching $641 a week on average.
A real estate was caught bragging about these shocking increases, with a Reddit user sharing the email celebrating their June Achievement of the biggest rent increase reaching $225 per week.
“My rent just went up $400 a month and the agency sent me an email bragging about it,“ the Reddit user said just 10 days ago.
If you don’t laugh you’ll cry, and satirical media platforms have kept some renters from spiralling. And by some, once again, I’m talking about myself.
“Landlord files for bankruptcy after tenant paying $1000 a week asks him to remove a bit of mould,“ The Chaser wrote.
Journalists continued the joke with, “Landlord forced to increase rent by 40 per cent to combat 1.75 per cent rise in interest rates.“
Beetoota Advocate writers also joined in on the gag saying, “Climate crisis to end housing crisis with new beach front properties in Ipswich.“
It is time for state and federal governments to intervene to limit the size of the increase with reference to inflation.
Ms Colvin said, “Jim Chalmers and Anthony Albanese have been clear that public spending should expand the economy and improve productivity. Social housing meets those objectives better than almost anything.“
“There really is no better return on the taxpayer’s dollar than providing the homes Australian families need to be healthy, productive workers, and to raise their families with the stability and security of a decent home.”
