Opinion: Finding solutions for Australia’s biggest social issue

The most essential part of improving a person’s wellbeing is providing them with a safe and secure home. A safe home isn’t just about having somewhere to sleep at night. It creates a foundation for our lives that is stable, gives us a sense of belonging within our community, personal pride and confidence, and sets us up to make a more meaningful contribution to society.

All Australians should have access to a safe and secure home, yet 116,000 Australians are homeless every night and 1.5 million live in housing stress. Social and affordable housing is desperately needed but the current supply cannot meet the demand, with this shortage expected to grow to one million in the next 16 years.

Having spent much of my career in the not-for-profit sector, I’ve seen first-hand the impact that a lack of social housing can have on those who are already disadvantaged in society, as well as the social and economic impact this has on the wider community. Without a safe and secure place to call home, people find it hard, if not impossible to secure and maintain employment, and look after both their physical and mental health. They are operating in survival mode and are just trying to get through each day. For many, this is their reality – things we take for granted just isn’t possible for people who don’t have a stable place to call home.

Homes for Homes was set up by The Big Issue to help solve the issue of the lack of social and affordable housing by creating new funding for social and affordable housing projects from the sale and resale of properties. It works by donors – individuals and property developers – agreeing to a caveat on their property title which allows a tax deductible donation of 0.1% of the sale price to be donated to Homes for Homes. The caveat remains on the property title which creates a ‘property pipeline’ that continues to generate new funding throughout the life of that property.

This funding is granted to experienced housing providers to increase supply. Many housing providers are missing between 1-15% of the total cost needed to complete a project, so this funding can be the difference between a project going ahead or not starting at all.

This model gives the entire community the opportunity to help provide a solution to what is becoming Australia’s biggest social issue, at a time when they are considering what it means to them to have a stable home.

I was extremely proud to see the keys to the first home funded with the support of Homes for Homes and built by Habitat for Humanity Victoria were handed over to a young family in housing stress. Nothing will ever quite compare to watching that family open the door to their home for the first time.

It showed me Homes for Homes is already having a positive effect on people’s lives, there is enormous potential to create change in the aggregation of donations from property sales, and that by working together we can make a significant difference in the community.

This milestone is a tangible representation of the sustainability of the Homes for Homes model and I am looking forward to seeing these ripples turning into waves of social change for many more vulnerable Australians.

Sally Hines is the Chief Operating Officer of Homes for Homes

Pearl Dy

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Pearl Dy is a community manager and journalist. She is passionate about business and development particularly involving not-for-profits, charity and social entrepreneurship.

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