A new report has laid bare the Hunter's alarming housing situation after no affordable rentals were found in the region for people on various welfare allowances.
Anglicare's 2023 Rental Affordability Snapshot found "rents in Australia have never been less affordable".
The snapshot included a survey of 2316 rental listings across Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Hunter Valley, Central Coast, and Mid North Coast taken on weekend of March 18, 2023.
It found no rentals were affordable for a couple with two children on JobSeeker, a single parent with two children on the Parenting Payment Single, a single parent with one child on JobSeeker or Parenting Payment Single.
There were also not any listings affordable for a single over 18 on Youth Allowance and no share house rentals were affordable for a single on Youth Allowance in a share house.
The benchmark for affordability is considered to be no more than 30 percent of a household budget.
The report said a rise in the number of Newcastle listings had not resulted in a corresponding increase in the number of affordable properties for people on low incomes.
Rental listings increased by 50 percent compared to 2022, but the number of affordable and appropriate rentals for an older person on the aged pension reduced from 57 to 26.
Samaritans Community Services Manager Lauren Fisher says the situation was also dire for young people.
"Samaritans Youth Homelessness Services in Newcastle and the Lower Hunter are at capacity and the beds in our Crisis Accommodation Services always seem to be full," she said.
"It is very hard to support a young person to continue their education, find stable employment and address their mental health without a roof over their head.
"Youth Allowance is the lowest payment that Centrelink provides as a safety net, meaning young people are worse off with the current housing affordability crisis and the rising cost of living.
"We are seeing more young people couch surf and stay in unsafe accommodation just to have a place to sleep. Governments need to take action to help provide more safe and affordable housing."
Anglicare has used the data to call for raise the rate of Centrelink payments above the poverty line, saying "this is the only effective way to help hundreds of thousands of Australians families and children on Centrelink payments escape poverty and find a secure and safe place to live".
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