The Strand Townsville
Family Homelessness in Townsville
FEAT has been working with homeless families in the Townsville region, providing housing and support services since 1978. The organisation has sound knowledge of family homelessness working from an understanding that homelessness is a combination of both structural and interpersonal factors such as:
There is a chronic lack of affordable housing in the Townsville region. Currently the average weekly rental for a 2 bedroom unit is $210 with a 3 bedroom house costing an average of $300. The high cost of rental in Townsville means that a significant proportion of low income families are paying more than 30% of their income in rent. The Shelter report ‘Towards an Affordable Housing Strategy for the Townsville Region’: 2004 stated that at least 9% of the population of Townsville were in housing stress.
The waitlist time for other affordable housing has increased. For Public Housing the average wait for a 2 bedroom unit is approximately 5 years. In response to this the Community Rent Scheme wait time has also ballooned out .
Despite changes to legalisation, tenancy blacklisting remains a significant issue with approximately 60% of homeless families who present at FEAT having been listed on the TICA list. Discrimination in the rental market is also widespread. Many families, especially those who are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders are unable to access any private rental.
Indigenous people make up approximately 5% of the Townsville population yet they are over represented in homelessness services. For instance the proportion of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander families who access FEAT services has remained consistently high between 35% and 40%. All of these factors impact negatively on the ability of low income families to access and maintain secure safe affordable housing in Townsville and Thuringowa.
