Many Tasmanians are looking towards December 15 with a level of trepidation, but for some families the reopening of borders has the potential to tip them into homelessness.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
According to the Rental Affordability Index, regional Tasmania is officially the least affordable area in Australia for rental properties.
This week's report showed that regional Tasmania "remains the least affordable of the rest of state areas studied".
Regional Tasmania has an RAI score of 103, representing a significant decline from 114 the year before.
The higher the score, the more affordable, with anything below 120 considered unaffordable.
That score is based on the average rental house gross income of $59,200 in regional Tasmania.
Launceston has a score of 94, based on that income, but a score of 24 for households reliant on government benefits - like Launceston single mother Bec.
After leaving an abusive relationship, Bec and her four children have been on the housing waitlist since 2017, and are living in a two-bedroom motel room in Launceston after being rejected for countless private rentals.
Their motel is the second in two months after an infestation of bedbugs at previous accommodation left the four children covered in bites.
After four years of waiting, the family has finally been approved for a house and are due to move in before Christmas.
Originally paying a fixed rate of $420 a week for her motel room, with borders reopening Bec had been told she will need to pay $150 a day for the remainder of her tenancy - leaving little to help fund the move.
Bec said she knew she was one of the lucky ones to be approved for a house, but held fears for families staying in motels and other temporary accommodation.
"It ends up being over $1000 a week in rent," she said.
"Who makes enough money to afford over a grand a week just for rent?"
For Strike it Out founder Kirsten Ritchie, the return of tourists to Tasmania could spell trouble for "dozens" of her clients currently living in motels.
"I'm terrified, the only reason these people have had a roof over their heads is because these hotels haven't been able to make money for the past two years," she said.
"And now they're going to be filled with tourists again."
Bec takes a 40-minute bus trip twice a day to take her two youngest children to primary school.
"We've had to move around so much and there's been so much chaos, it's good to try and keep them with their friends," she said.
She said she was relieved to finally be able to provide a sense of safety and stability for her family, but felt for her neighbours in the motel who faced an uncertain future.
What do you think? Send us a letter to the editor:
Sarah Davison
Education reporter at The Examiner, with an additional focus on issues affecting the LGBTQIA+ community. With a background in Psychology, Sarah completed her Master's thesis on the Australian media's coverage of familicide. Get in touch: sarah.davison@examiner.com.au or 0448 682 861
Education reporter at The Examiner, with an additional focus on issues affecting the LGBTQIA+ community. With a background in Psychology, Sarah completed her Master's thesis on the Australian media's coverage of familicide. Get in touch: sarah.davison@examiner.com.au or 0448 682 861
