Rental-Insights-A-COVID-19-Collection - Flipbook - Page 31
RENTAL INSIGHTS:
UNHEALTHY HOUSING
What is the relevance
to Australian policy?
One under-explored consequence
of the increasing lock-out of younger
generations from home ownership, is
that many young families are tenants.
Put another way, growing numbers of
Australian children are spending all or
large parts of their formative years living
in rental housing.
This includes children living in moderate
income families as well as those living
with low-waged families. It also includes
children living in very low-income families
in privately rented or social housing.
Housing quality is important in all tenure
forms, for residents of all generations.
Relatively light touch regulations about
the quality of private rental housing
in most states and territories is
inadequate for protecting children and
teens from the negative impacts of poor
building quality.
Number of housing quality conditions reported by families living with children, in
private and social rented housing
60%
Number of poor conditions 0
Number of poor conditions 1
Number of poor conditions 2
Number of poor conditions 3+
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Couple
Single
Private
Couple
Single
Social
A focus on social housing as essential
quality infrastructure accompanied
with renewed investment is needed.
The multiple housing condition
problems that families with children live
with across all rented housing indicates
the need for an Australian focus on the
rights of children to live in adequate
quality dwellings, and a policy roadmap
to achieve this.
Families with children are significantly
more likely to live with three or more
forms of housing condition problems
than households without children.
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