Anglicare's annual Rental Affordability Snapshot has revealed that low income earners remain shut out of the private rental market in Yass.
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The survey, which looked at 32 properties in the Yass region, found no suitable homes for a family or single person living on Newstart, people on Youth Allowance and single parents receiving a Parenting Payment.
Yass local Tanya Shepherd has been with the Rae Burgess Centre for around four years and only recently moved into a property just outside Yass town.
But, as a single parent to five kids, she remains dissatisfied with the home.
"It's fairly basic but I just don't like the house, I don't like the location. The house is really old as well and it's freezing."
She said she couldn't speak highly enough of the Rae Burgess Centre, in the role its played in finding her a home.
"They've been absolutely excellent, with housing and maintaining my housing, I can't speak of them highly enough."
Ms Shepherd has lived in Yass for most of her life, but she's keen to take her family and move on.
"There's nothing to do with kids here in Yass, you have to go to Canberra to do a lot of things like see a movie or something.
"I'd like to move away and have a fresh start somewhere, we were looking at Coffs Harbour actually."
Anglicare Regional Director, Simon Bennett, said the undersupply of affordable rentals in the Yass Valley was extremely concerning.
“Housing affordability is one of the biggest drivers of poverty and it is unacceptable that low income households are being forced to pay more than 30 per cent of their income on rent, placing them in housing stress,” Mr Bennett said.
“The housing situation in Yass is further fuelled by Canberra’s housing crisis, where we are seeing people commuting to the ACT for work in order to live in a more affordable area.
“It’s frightening to find that even in light of the changes to single parent benefits, to encourage single parents to find work, that even a full time, low-skilled worker cannot afford to live with their family in Yass.”
Mr Bennett fears the number of people living in poverty and crisis in the Yass Valley region will continue to rise if the rental issue is not addressed.
“There is an urgent need for a new and considered approach towards funding affordable housing in Australia,” he said.
The Rae Burgess Centre, based in Banjo Paterson Park, was established in 2005 and currently supports more than 30 families facing adversity.