Housing

Housing is a concern for anyone on a low income, but at the crucial early stages of settlement, refugee and humanitarian entrants need stability of housing so that they can fully address their other settlement needs and start to build a secure future in Australia. The lack of availability and accessibility of low cost housing presents enormous challenges for new arrivals.

Factors that can hinder refugees in the housing and rental markets include:

• Shortage of low-cost housing – The availability and accessibility of both social and private housing for low income Australians is a major issue of concern.  Vacancy rates for dwellings in the private housing market are significantly low, ranging from 0.4% in Canberra to 2.1% in Brisbane in May 2010. The availability of low rental housing has significantly diminished, with low rental stock dropping from 353,000 (27%) dwellings at the time of the 2001 Census to 285,000 dwellings (19%) in 2006. At the same time there is a critical shortage of social housing as a result of a progressive withdrawal of funding from the system. In 2010, there were over 230,000 individuals and families on social housing waiting lists across the country.

• Competing in the private rental market – When trying to secure properties in the private rental market, refugee and humanitarian entrants faced hurdles at all stages of the process.  They face difficulties finding properties, inspecting properties and applying for properties; when they do make applications, lack of rental history, unemployment and discrimination are key factors in undermining the likelihood of being accepted.

• Financial hardship – Refugee and humanitarian entrants are often reliant upon Centrelink benefits when they first arrive in Australia as they attend English language classes, undertake training and look for work. Factors such as lack of budgeting skills, unfamiliarity with tenancy arrangements, arriving in Australia with little or no financial resources, sending remittances to those living in precarious situations overseas and repaying debts associated with migration, render the task of meeting private rental costs exceptionally challenging. It is widely held that Centrelink’s rent assistance payment has not kept up with soaring prices, with the result that many refugees and humanitarian entrants finding themselves in ‘housing stress’ (i.e. more than half of their income is spent on paying rent). Affordable housing is particularly elusive for single person households because typically the proportion of rent to income is significantly higher.

• Rights and responsibilities - Many newly arrived refugees lack the necessary skills to effectively navigate the private rental market and are often unaware of their tenancy rights and responsibilities. Many have spent extended periods of time in refugee camps and have no experience of rental housing. Additionally, refugee entrants may lack the necessary English language skills to communicate effectively on housing issues or fully grasp the nature of tenancy arrangements. Due to these factors, many are unlikely to be able to advocate successfully if they are having difficulties meeting their obligations as tenants. Refugees are an easy target for exploitative landlords as they are often unaware of their rights and the existence of tenancy tribunals or how they operate.

• Family size - Securing suitably-sized houses for large families is a particularly challenging issue. In most capital cities, four bedroom or larger houses are usually too expensive for families from a refugee background or are simply unavailable. The difficulty of acquiring appropriate housing for large families can lead to overcrowding.

 The challenges identified above results in many individuals being vulnerable to homelessness. Though reports of “primary homelessness” (i.e. people living on the streets, in deserted buildings, in railway carriages, under bridges etc) among refugee and humanitarian entrants are less common, reports of “secondary homelessness” (i.e. people moving between various forms of temporary shelter, such as homes of friends and relatives, refuges, boarding houses and other forms of emergency accommodation) are far more common, particularly among young people. There is a lack of appropriate and culturally sensitive supports, and in particular crisis accommodation, for refugee and humanitarian entrants who become homeless.

For more information and links to research on housing and refugee settlement, see our Settlement Resources page.