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A large proportion of Australian rental properties are in such poor condition that they are putting residents’ health and wellbeing at risk, an alarming new report showed.
Recent research from the University of South Australia has revealed the concerning extent to which residents’ overall welfare are being compromised by the subpar condition of majority of rental properties.
Particularly alarming are rental properties plagued by poor heating and cooling systems, as well as issues with dampness and mould, university researchers found.
“Substandard housing has strong associations with population health and wellbeing. For instance, housing that is too cold in winter has effects on cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and mental health.
“Housing that is damp and mouldy has been shown to have wide-reaching effects, particularly on acute asthma in children. Likewise, housing that is insecure or unaffordable has long-term effects on residents’ mental health,” the report read.
Notably, this is not the first time experts sounded the alarm over the issue. Prior to COVID-19, a separate research from the University of Adelaide found an estimated 1 million Australians were living in “poor” to “very poor housing”.
UniSA Enterprise Fellow and associate professor in architecture, Dr Lyrian Daniel said rising interest rates and other factors are likely to have dramatically increased this pre-COVID figure.
“We are seeing a perfect storm for renters at the moment. Cost-of-living pressures, record-low vacancy rates, and a housing stock largely unregulated in terms of quality and condition mean that many households have no choice but to put up with conditions that may be harming their family’s health,” she explained.
According to the study, weak regulation of housing standards and under-investment in public housing services in Australia have significantly contributed to the deteriorating conditions in the country’s rental market.
And while researchers found international regulations existed to address the issue, the report noted there was no comparable or effective Australian policy to ensure the quality and condition of rental homes.
“Internationally, other countries are a step ahead of us in putting better protections in place,” Dr Daniel stated.
For instance, while new and renovated houses in Australia must have a seven-star energy efficiency rating, Dr Daniel pointed out that existing housing stock remains among the least energy efficient of all homes in Australia.
“People who are renting a home have a right to expect that their housing is fit for living. But when we are continually seeing reports of mould, disrepair, and other awful conditions, we know that something is wrong,” she stated.
To gain insights into improving housing standards in the Australian public and private rental sectors, the researchers investigated two international policy frameworks: the Homes Act 2018 in the UK and the Healthy Homes Guarantee Act 2017 in Aotearoa New Zealand.
In the UK, all rented houses must be fit for human habitation under the Homes Act, and in New Zealand, the Healthy Homes Guarantee Act requires all rental properties to meet a defined standard.
Given positive outcomes from both policies, the report underlined the effectiveness of targeted measures in raising housing standards and promoting overall wellbeing for tenants.
Building upon the valuable insights garnered from the case studies conducted in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, researchers have identified five crucial policy recommendations that call for institutional shifts to prioritise healthy housing standards and tackle quality concerns in Australia’s rental and social housing sectors, which were:
- Policy objectives explicitly linking housing conditions and health outcomes
- Community awareness and sector advocacy used to help overcome complex structures of government
- Policy approaches that foster collective social responsibility
- Transparent and objective mandatory requirements
- Robust protocols developed and applied for tracking progress
Dr Daniel said there was some cause for optimism regarding housing policy in Australia with renewed interest from all levels of government since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The lessons learned from our international counterparts represent a chance for us to put some solid policies in place to make sure that all Australians have homes that are health supporting,” she said.
“But we need to make sure that our politicians and policymakers know that this is an important issue. As a community, we need to keep this at the top of the agenda,” she concluded.
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