Helping people to stay in their homes

Professionals working in the community services sector and the real estate industry came together during Homelessness Week to explore practical solutions to housing instability across Tasmania’s North and North West.

Workshops in Launceston and Ulverstone offered by the Housing Connect Front Door service run by Anglicare were attended by more than 50 people.

Attendees learned how practical tools available through Housing Connect such as the payment of bonds, arrears and removal costs can prevent people renting in the private market from being evicted because they fall behind in their rent.

Almost half of the people who come through the Housing Connect Front Door are already homeless, explained Anglicare’s Senior Connections Manager (North) Darren McGhee.

“We can get a much better outcome for them if we can prevent that homelessness from happening in the first place,” Darren said.

“Many of the people we see experience persistent disadvantage. They may be fleeing from domestic and family violence or coping with a mental health condition. A stable, affordable roof over their head, along with wrap around support services such as financial counselling can make a huge difference in people’s lives.

Darren said the objective of the workshops was to show how the pieces of Tasmania’s complex housing puzzle fit together. He said:

It was really encouraging to see that we all share the same goals – to intervene early and provide the right kind of supports so that we can help people to secure and maintain a stable, long-term home.

Lisa Hawkins works in residential property management with Launceston-based firm the Howell Property Group. She described the Launceston workshop as a valuable opportunity to learn about the services that are available to tenants in need.

“I have worked in social and affordable housing as well as the private rental market and I have seen how hard it is for people with complex needs to sustain a tenancy, especially in the private sector when they don’t have that support,” she said.

“The main message I took away from the workshop is that we are all here to help each other. We need to reach out to each other and ask for information. In real estate we take instructions from the property owner. A more collaborative approach with the community services sector will make our jobs easier, improve outcomes for our tenants and enable us to continue to protect the interests of our property owners. We would appreciate the opportunity to learn more about how to support people with complex needs.”