Struggling to cover the cost of essentials?
Huge dips in household income mean around 40 per cent of renters can't afford essential items including bills, clothing, transport and food after they are paying rent due, according to new research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) and University of Adelaide.
Australians earning less than $90,000 experienced higher rates of reduced working hours, temporary job loss and reduction in income when compared with higher-income households.
These lower-income households are now struggle to pay for the essentials after paying rent.
“COVID-19 has been devastating for many Australians, but those in the rental sector have been particularly impacted,” said project leader Professor Emma Baker.
“The pandemic, and the subsequent economic and social lockdown, has rapidly changed our housing system: the way we use our homes, our ability to afford them, and the role of government safety nets.
“The pandemic has placed many people in the rental market at risk; they face uncertainty, tenure insecurity, financial hardship and significant mental health effects.”
More than a quarter of Aussie households (28 per cent) say they would still need goverment assistance for at least the next 12 months, while 31 per cent were unsure and 40 per cent said that they would not.
“Many renters are currently buffered from the full economic effects of the pandemic by their savings, their superannuation and rent deferment, as well as a temporary government support in the form of eviction moratoriums, JobKeeper and JobSeeker,” said Prof. Baker.
“With the ongoing health and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic still evolving, if these savings and superannuation buffers eventually run out, renters will be entirely dependent on packages of government support. In the absence of an effective and accessible vaccine, it is likely that the situation for renters captured in this mid-2020 snapshot will be different – and almost certainly worse – by mid-2021.”
Do you think you will still need government supplements for the next 12 months, above and beyond your usual payments or income?
If households below 90,000 are struggling, try living your life in a household below 50,000 and even 25,000 as do most people on disability.