In a corner of the Deloraine Apex Caravan Park up against the flood-prone Meander River there sits a grouping of tents, cars and caravans.
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It's not an unusual sight for a caravan park, apart from one aspect: they don't drive away at the end of the long weekend. They are home to a small group of people.
Some have lived there for decades, helping to keep the park's maintenance up-to-date during the quiet winter months.
They were recently given two weeks' notice to vacate with the park's owners wanting to lop some trees nearby and do other upgrades. The group contacted community service organisation Deloraine House and, after some negotiation, this was extended to June 30 when the park would close for three months.
"It's not as simple as saying, well, let's just move them to another place," Deloraine House manager Debbie Smith said.
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"They have a good little community there. They support each other. We've had people come and sleep rough, so they'll send them up to us so we can help them out."
Single sites come in at $120 per week, while doubles are $185. But decent houses to rent in the Meander Valley can be double - or often triple - that amount.
Ms Smith said it meant options were limited, and they were seeing more people facing critical housing stress in the area. Most of the nearby caravan parks were in more isolated communities with few shops.
Roy Cresswell, of Deloraine Apex, said the group would be able to return after the three months, but their tents and other belongings would need to leave and return each month, as per the park's contract.
"We want to keep people mobile, and we need to fell trees and tidy up, which we never get to do," he said.
"We're on a flood-prone river and when it's raining we have to get down there, so it becomes a bit of a hazard. We're all volunteers just trying to do the best we can to keep the park going."
Mr Cresswell and Ms Smith were at odds over the situation, but as the group faces an uncertain future, the issue highlights a problem across Tasmania: the role accommodation providers are having to play as housing of last resort.
Filling the gap during COVID
When borders closed, it created a new opportunity for Tasmania's empty hotels, motels and caravan parks to establish brokerage arrangements with community service organisations, like Anglicare, to house the homeless.
But as interstate visitors have been allowed to return, business owners have been withdrawing. Around Launceston, most of the remaining caravan parks are believed to have ended this arrangement.
Anglicare general manager housing and community services, Noel Mundy, said the summer tourist cycle usually reduced the amount of emergency accommodation available in the North.
He said the brokerage system during COVID had provided "much-needed accommodation" and kept local businesses afloat, but other solutions would be needed.
"These opportunities have reduced significantly since visitors have returned to the market," he said.
"There is an increase in demand for emergency accommodation across the North and North-West. The accommodation is not available to meet this demand.
"Many rentals in the region are simply unaffordable for people on income support or in low-paid employment. In the North, the median rent is $425 per week.
"Anglicare knows of people being evicted from private rentals at the end of their lease period and being unable to secure another rental prior to having to vacate the current one."
After that, their options are increasingly limited.
Demand on shelters rising with no end in sight
The one family shelter in Launceston, Orana House, is usually fully occupied. The Warrawee women's shelter in Ulverstone and Oakleigh House for men in Burnie have limited space.
City Mission's Safe Space in Launceston fills up fast every morning and, like most shelters, is not suitable for families.
City Mission Launceston housing manager Stephen Hill said people who had previously received brokered accommodation at caravan parks and hotels were back looking for shelter.
"We're noticing the change, particularly with people who were engaged for brokered accommodation. The number of caravan parks and hotels that were accepting brokerage through Housing Connect, Anglicare, CatholicCare, they're not able to work in that space. There's nothing available," he said.
"We're returning back to that pre-COVID space where we're finding that there's not enough crisis support for people who are finding themselves in a situation where they need somewhere to stay quickly."
The number of times shelters had to turn people away in Tasmania increased from 15,221 in 2019-20 to 18,421 in 2020-21.
Mr Hill said it should not be up to caravan parks and hotels to act as a safety net.
"They're not there to deal with the homeless. They're there for tourists, that's their business model," he said.
"The fact that they've been available for a period of time has been great, but a lot refers back to the need for crisis and support accommodation."
Housing affordability squeezing more people out of homes
Over the last five years, median rents in Tasmania have increased 46 per cent in the South, 39 per cent in the North and 25 per cent in the North-West. Hobart has become Australia's least affordable city, relative to income.
At the same time, the social housing waiting list has grown 66 per cent from 2625 applicants to 4367 in August this year. The average wait has increased from 48 weeks to 59.
Regional Tasmania was also found to be the most expensive region relative to income in the country, according to SGS Economics.
Tenants' Union of Tasmania principal solicitor Ben Bartl said it all fed into a worsening housing crisis.
And for those who find themselves living in caravan parks, their rights were extremely limited.
"Caravan park tenants have very few protections under the Residential Tenancy Act," Mr Bartl said.
"The government might be considering changing the Act to include these tenants. Are they intending to give them greater protections?"
Housing Minister Michael Ferguson did not respond to a question regarding whether the government would seek to update the Residential Tenancy Act in the coming years.
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When asked how the government was preparing for an increase in demand for homelessness services, he encouraged people to contact Housing Connect.
"Housing Connect responds to normal seasonal variations in accommodation provider availability by considering a range of brokered accommodation options in different locations," Mr Ferguson said.
"We have 1155 units of new social housing, supported accommodation and homeless accommodation projects currently in the pipeline of works."
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