Homes for people: Housing solutions for everyone

In November, the Tenants' Union of NSW, along with our Homes for People coalition partners, launched the election advocacy platform Homes for People: Housing Solutions for Everyone at a briefing event at NSW Parliament House.

Homes for People is a coalition of NSW housing campaigns -  including Make Renting Fair, Building Better Homes, Healthy Homes for Renters, and Ageing on the Edge. We came together to give focus to the problems many people face in relation to housing. We are calling for housing reform that will create the homes people want and need; homes that provide shelter, safety, stability, and comfort.

The event, hosted by Alex Greenwich MP and MC-ed by Associate Professor Emma Power of Western Sydney University, highlighted key housing solutions urgently needed to address the current housing crisis. Speakers from across the campaigns, as well as people who are confronted directly and daily with the problems in private rental, talked to the urgent need to:

• Increase affordable housing options
  Everyone should be able to afford their housing, without having to forgo basic essentials to afford the rent.
• Increase housing stability and security for renters
  Everyone should have stability and security in their home. Renters should not face eviction for ‘no reason’.
• Healthy homes for renters
  Everyone deserves a healthy home - one they can keep at a comfortable and healthy temperature throughout the year, without facing punishingly high energy bills.
• Build more accessible homes
  Everyone wants to live together in homes that work for them, across all circumstances and stages of life.
• Resource housing advice and support for older people
  Older people are at increased risk of homelessness and need specialised services to support them find and sustain housing.