It’s been a tough year for homeless people, which is why the Property Council hasn’t stepped back from its partnership with the Property Industry Foundation to raise funds for homeless youth.
Every night there are 44,000 young Australians without a safe place to sleep. Nearly a third are children under the age of 12. The Property Industry Foundation (PIF) brings the property and construction industry together to build homes for vulnerable youth.
Each year the Property Council’s teams raise funds for PIF through raffles at Christmas lunches and donations in lieu of speaker gifts at events, conferences and courses.
“It’s been a challenging a year for events, but the Property Council hasn’t stepped back from PIF,” says director of the Property Council Academy and PIF champion, Kelly Jones.
“Instead, we’ve found new creative ways to connect with our members and support PIF’s mission.”
In one of the largest face-to-face events post-COVID, 264 people gathered for the Property Council’s NSW Christmas lunch at the Fullerton Hotel in Sydney last Friday. The Property Council team sold 756 tickets in the annual raffle and raised over $8,000 to build homes for at-risk youth. 
Meanwhile, a national virtual gathering of property and construction industry to crowdfund for homeless youth was held last week, with some of the young people who have benefited from PIF sharing their stories. A cheque for $31,650 was presented to PIF at the event.
PIF will build more bedrooms for homeless youth with the money raised. Since 2018, with the help of the property industry, PIF has built 76 bedrooms and has another 30 in development. Over the lifetime of these bedrooms, hundreds of children will get a second chance at life.
PIF’s House Program aims to increase the availability of transitional housing for homeless youth aged 25 and under. With a place to call home, a young person can establish a routine and further their education. Transitional housing for an at-risk young person is an opportunity to pave a path to a brighter future.
PIF House Program taps into the expertise and building capability of the property and construction industry. For every dollar donated, PIF can deliver $2 worth of value due to the donations of labour and goods from the industry.
“We are excited to ramp up our events program next year, and to continue to make a meaningful difference to the lives of homeless young,” Jones concludes.