Briefs

A significant proportion of young people who experience homelessness have previously been in the state care and protection system. This Brief explores what the financial cost could be to government if a Rent Subsidy Scheme was introduced, aimed at preventing young people leaving state care from becoming homeless. Through the proposed Scheme, all young people leaving state care would pay no more than 25 per cent of their income for housing up to the age of 25.

Sustaining tenancy programs assist tenants who are at risk of losing their rental accommodation to stay in their homes and therefore ‘avoid eviction and entry into homelessness.’ Tenant support programs may also help some tenants at the beginning of their tenancy by supporting formerly homeless people enter and sustain a new rental tenancy. 

There are costs to the general economy when there is a mismatch between the location of jobs, affordable housing opportunities and inadequate public transport. This Brief demonstrates that when good transport and other infrastructure connects householders to a wide range of employment opportunities, urban productivity can be enhanced.

New York city (USA) initiated a 10-year plan to build and preserve 200,000 affordable housing units so as to support households with a range of incomes, from the very lowest to those in the middle class, to create a diverse workforce that drives economic growth. Australian cities can learn from this case study as they are losing their geographically diverse, affordable housing, which may reduce productivity into the future.

Over recent decades Australia’s housing system has shown reductions in rates of affordable housing, stable tenure housing and affordable locations close to employment, all of which weaken urban productivity growth. This Brief presents policy options that can improve the qualities of Australia’s housing market, so as to improve urban productivity growth.