The Australian Greens believe that affordable, safe and secure housing is a basic human right.

Yet in these times of plenty in Australia, there is a housing crisis, particularly for low income people, with increased need for public and community housing and emergency housing for the homeless.

We are also seeing the housing crisis affect middle income people with housing becoming less affordable. We are identified as one of the least affordable housing markets in the world with Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide all in the top 20 least affordable cities.

Almost 1.2 million Australian households are in "housing stress" and over 400,000 are in "extreme housing stress". Housing has become increasingly unaffordable for Australians on lower incomes, with the price of buying a house now over seven times the average yearly wage.

We are also seeing increased financial stress for many in the rental market. While private renters are only one fifth of all households, they make up over half of households in housing stress. 35% of Commonwealth Rent Assistance recipients spend over 30% of their incomes on housing costs. There is currently a shortage of around 134 000 rental properties at the lower end of the market.

Younger Australians in particular are facing unprecedented challenges with housing affordability and housing stress. The lack of affordable housing, particularly for people on low incomes, represents both a serious market failure as well as serious policy failure by both federal and state governments.

Housing & Poverty

The cost of housing is a major contributor to poverty, and a commitment to safe, secure and affordable housing is a necessary component of any national poverty plan. Stable housing is important not only because it provides shelter, but also because it enables families and individuals to participate in the community around them. The lack of stable housing is a major contributor to social exclusion to those experiencing disadvantage and can be a key factor in creating and perpetuating intergenerational poverty.

The Salvation Army states that over 1.2 million low to middle income households are suffering "housing stress" and that this represents 1 in every 7 households. This is a significant and unexpected increase in housing stress given that in 2001 it was expected that the number of households experiencing housing stress would reach not reach 1 million until 2020.

Housing costs take up a more significant proportion of the income of low income families, which results in increased financial pressure. Over 350 000 Australians families with children have insufficient money to pay for essentials such as food, clothing, heating and transport after housing costs are accounted for.

Homelessness

Homelessness is an increasing consequence of the housing crisis, particularly the crisis in the rental market. More than 100 000 Australians are homeless on any given night.

In 2006 more than 45 000 families and 115,000 single adults and young people received help from homelessness services. Homelessness has a devastating impact on individuals and families as well as our community as a whole. It can have a serious impact on health, employment and education, particularly for children.

Half of the people getting help from homelessness services are families with children. It is difficult to keep a job while homeless, and difficult for children to stay in school or continue further study. It creates a cycle that is difficult to break.

Government Neglect

The reasons for Australia's housing crisis are mixed. However, the extreme difficulties faced by the most disadvantaged in our community in accessing safe, secure affordable housing are in large part due to Government neglect.

Government expenditure on public or social housing has declined significantly in the last ten years. In real terms Government expenditure on the Commonwealth State Housing Agreement declined by around 30% in the last decade while the number of households in housing stress has grown over the same period.

Community and social housing is a vital component of addressing the need for accessible housing for the most disadvantaged. Greater investment in public and community housing is essential to meet current and projected demand. We support the calls by National Shelter and the Salvation Army for the Federal Government to significantly increase investment in social housing.

Indigenous Housing

The contribution of the lack of sufficient safe and appropriate housing to severe poverty and entrenched disadvantage for Indigenous Australians is particularly stark. All of the many reports into child abuse, family violence and chronic health issues in Indigenous communities (in both urban and rural/remote areas) point to overcrowded housing as a key contributing factor.

The recent Little Children are Sacred Report into child abuse in the Northern Territory
highlighted this fact:

"The present level of overcrowding in houses has a direct impact on family and sexual violence, substance abuse and chronic illness, and results in devastating outcomes in terms of education and employment."

The Australian Greens believe that there must be immediate and sustained action to construct sufficient adequate housing for Indigenous Australians, and to undertake essential repairs and maintenance to existing houses. It is estimated that a commitment of $2.3 Billion is needed to address the national shortfall in Indigenous housing.

Tackling the housing crisis in Indigenous communities also presents an opportunity to provide training and employment for Indigenous people in the construction, repair and maintenance of housing.

A Greener Policy on Housing

There are no simple answers to addressing Australia's housing crisis. Federal, State and local governments all have a role in the housing market, and better coordination, together with a comprehensive policy approach is vital to effectively address these issues.

The Australian Greens do not believe simplistic suggestions, such as increasing housing supply through further releases of land, or merely increasing subsidies and incentives will provide real solutions to the problem of housing affordability.

These one-off populist measures fail to address the underlying structural issues that continue to make housing unaffordable.

Instead the issue of housing affordability for all Australians, particularly low income households, needs to be addressed in a comprehensive and coordinated way.

The policy measures proposed by the Australian Greens include the development of national planning guidelines for new housing developments that require a social mix of public and private housing - with a target of 20% low cost and public housing, and housing that caters for diverse social needs. The Greens strongly believe that the housing needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in particular should be met as a matter of urgency.

The Greens are particularly keen to ensure proper review is conducted of the subsidies and concessions available in private rental accommodation, and that these are targeted at achieving affordable housing for low income households.