Tackling homelessness head-on

What can the property industry do to support older Australians? Look at innovative housing models for older women at risk of homelessness, says Australia’s Age Discrimination Commissioner, The Hon Dr Kay Patterson AO.

Patterson, who will be headlining the Property Council’s Retirement Living Summit this month, has maintained a strong interest in issues affecting older people throughout her professional life.

While teaching allied health for 11 years, Patterson recognised there was a need for students to study both geriatrics – the care of aging people – and gerontology, or the study of the ageing process.

Using the knowledge gained during her time studying gerontology at two universities in the United States, Patterson introduced courses on ageing into undergraduate programs, and co-developed Victoria’s first post-graduate diploma in gerontology.

Following her election to the Senate in 1987, she held various federal ministerial portfolios, including health and social security, both in Opposition and Government.

A year into the job as Australia’s Age Discrimination Commissioner, Patterson is zeroing in on the rights of older workers, and the blight of elder abuse, and is also investigating solutions to the growing problem of homelessness among older Australians, particularly women.

‘The nation faces a potential tsunami of older women at risk of homelessness,” Patterson says.

A Homelessness Australia report, released in August, revealed the number of older women couch surfing has risen by 83 per cent in the last four years, with a 75 per cent increase in the number of older women sleeping in cars.

Since 2012, 23 per cent more older Australians are living in rooming houses – often the last resort for people in the private rental market.

“Older women’s incomes and work cycles are different from men’s. Many women face old age renting and with insufficient superannuation, having been in and out of the workforce over the course of their lives,” she says.

The latest breakdown from the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia shows that despite an increase in women’s superannuation at retirement, they still have significantly less than men, with women having $157,0 on average, compared to $270,710 for men.

“This is nowhere near enough for women to live on when they retire,” Patterson adds.

“An unexpected crisis – the death of a spouse or divorce – can make women extremely vulnerable to homelessness. And it can force older women into social housing, which is under significant pressure already.”

Patterson says there is a range of solutions – from group housing models to ethical investment frameworks – which can help. She is currently bringing together a range of players in the property, not-for-profit, and government sectors, to work on a way forward.

But it needs a “multi-pronged approach” that acknowledges the “complex range of people in different circumstances at different ages”.

Patterson points to the Doorway program, operated by not-for-profit Wellways, which helps people experiencing mental health issues who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, to secure and sustain a home within the private rental market.

People in the program are required to pay 30 per cent of their income and Commonwealth Rent Assistance directly towards the rent, and Doorway pays the difference for up to 18 months.

An independent evaluation of the Doorway program found that one third of the participants’ mental health improved and they no longer required case management and clinical services, and the majority of participants achieved stable and secure private rental accommodation for the first time in their lives.

“This model could work more broadly to help address a range of housing issues. There are other models which could be developed or adapted as well”, she says.

“This is an age issue and a women’s issue – and it’s an issue for all Australians. The culture and environment in place now is what we will all inherit when we are older.”

Dr Kay Patterson will be speaking at the Property Council’s Retirement Living Summit on Tuesday 28 November. Register today.