The grim reality of the shortage of available housing in Hay hit home to one young family recently.

After a career change which saw Mick and Gabby Flattery and six-year-old Connor leave employer-supplied housing, they faced the disheartening search for a rental property in Hay.

“We were lucky to be able to move into short-term accommodation while we searched for a rental property, but unfortunately that ended sooner than expected and put us in the very stressful situation of having to find a rental very quickly,” Gabby said.

“We – and our families – have made numerous phone calls, enquiries and knocked on doors, trying to find anything at all to rent.

“We contacted real estate agents, Air BnB hosts, people who had their houses for sale, and people with empty houses in Hay, with little success.

“There isn’t even small one-bedroom unit to rent, let alone family houses.

“We were facing the decision to move in with family, or leave Hay.

“Somehow the stars aligned and we have managed to secure an off-market rental, and we have the security of a home – for now.”

Both the Flatterys work locally and would not be the usual stereotype of a family facing homelessness.

But that was their reality before they moved into Church Street on the weekend.

“I know of other people in the same situation as us, who are facing homelessness or crashing on a friend’s couch if they cannot find housing in the next few weeks,” Gabby said.

“I didn’t realise the severity of the rental crisis in the area until we were faced with this situation.”

Jodi Plant works in real estate as a property manager but she and her partner have been searching for their forever home since late 2022.

“The prices are going up and up because there are so few houses for sale,” she said.

“We’ve looked at places that need work, but then it is too hard to get tradies.

“I have that issue at work all the time – we can’t even get simple jobs done, like fixing tiles or replacing carpet, without a six-month wait.”

The crisis is electorate-wide. In the federal seat of Farrer there are more than 73,700 households in towns such as Hay, Balranald, Deniliquin and Griffith.

According to the Everybody’s Home campaign 40.8 per cent of renters and 29.7 per cent of mortgage holders are experiencing financial stress. As the rising cost of living pressures continue, experts are concerned that tenants may stay quiet about unsafe properties or illegal rent rises, for fear of becoming homeless.

The campaign estimates the Farrer electorate has an unmet social housing need of 4,300 homes.

“Every night more than 122,000 Australians are homeless in Australia. Homelessness affects every part of our country,” a statement on their website says.

“The best way to help end homelessness is to provide more social housing for people who need a home.

“But Australia has a shortfall of 640,000 social housing properties.”

Despite recent interest rate rises across Australia, housing prices have not fallen far in the regions.

In Hay, the median house price has risen by 11.63 per cent, compared to the national average of 4.3 per cent, according to data analyst CoreLogic.

This article appeared in The Riverine Grazier, 24 January 2024.