About 75% of all students receiving the youth allowance and rent assistance face “housing stress”, government data reveals.
For those getting Newstart and rent assistance, the figure is about 60%, a statistic advocates say further highlights the need for an increase in welfare payments. The government often argues against an increase by noting that many recipients of the youth allowance and Newstart also get other payments, usually a reference to rent assistance.
Data provided by the Department of Social Services to Senate estimates shows there were about 520,000 people receiving income support and rent assistance who were spending more than 30% of their income on rent in June last year. The figure represents 40% of all Australians receiving rent assistance.
About 160,000 – or 13% – forked out more than half their income on rent, and about 40% of students on the youth allowance did so.
Age pensioners and those on disability and parenting payments, which are higher than the dole, were less likely to be facing housing stress – though their cost of living would probably be higher.
About 30% (80,000) of disability pensioners were facing housing stress, and that figure rose to 32.5% (88,000) for age pensioners and 42% (54,000) for those on single parenting payments.
Rental assistance is paid to eligible people in the private rental market. About 40% of those on Newstart get the payment, which peaks at $137.20 a fortnight.
The average fortnightly rent paid by those on Newstart was $456.45, the departmental data showed. A single person without children on Newstart gets $555.70 a fortnight, while the rate is $455.20 for the youth allowance.
The rental stress data was provided to Senate estimates in response to questions from the Greens senator Rachel Siewert.
“Every person and their dog, except apparently the government knows that Newstart and youth allowance are too low, so unfortunately I’m not surprised, given the low rate of the payments, that people are experiencing extreme housing stress,” she said.
“How are people meant to get ‘job ready’ when they are living in extreme stress in poverty?”
The Australian Council of Social Service (Acoss), which wants a $75 weekly increase to Newstart and the youth allowance, at a cost to the budget of $3 billion a year, is also calling for a $20 weekly increase in rent assistance. This would cost the budget $800m.
Anglicare’s rental affordability snapshot found last year that of 67,300 rentals advertised across the country, only two were affordable for youth allowance recipients.
The government declined to raise the Newstart allowance in Tuesday’s budget. Labor has said it would review the payment, although it has pledged to build 250,000 affordable homes if elected.
Median rents rose in most capital cities last month, including in Melbourne and Sydney despite the downturn in their markets.
