An estimated 381,400 Australian households lived in public
rental, Indigenous rental or community housing provided under the
Commonwealth-State national housing program during 2002-03,
according to three new reports released today by the Australian
Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The reports show that at least 349,998 households received
assistance through mainstream public housing and the Aboriginal
Rental Housing Program during 2002-03, representing 5% of all
households.
In addition, the Commonwealth-State Housing Agreement (CSHA)
community housing assists about 31,400 households with rental
housing. The number of community houses in Australia is
small-representing less than half of 1% of all housing tenures.
Over 33,000 households were newly allocated public housing
during 2002-03.
Programs funded under the CSHA are designed to help people whose
needs for appropriate housing cannot be met by the private
market.
Head of the AIHW's Housing Assistance Unit, David Wilson, said
that almost half (48%) of all public rental housing newly allocated
under the CSHA during 2002-03 was made to households who had
'special needs'.
'These are often people who have difficulty accessing
appropriate accommodation in the private rental market because of
discrimination or, in the case of people with disabilities, lack of
appropriate housing to suit their needs,' Mr Wilson said.
'Of the new households allocated public rental housing in
Australia from 1 July 2002 to 30 June 2003, 3,557 allocations were
made to Indigenous households, representing 10.7% of all new
allocations.
'Similarly, 1,100 of the 17,900 new households provided with
community housing under the CSHA during 2002-03 were to Indigenous
households, representing 6% of all new households assisted.
There were almost 12,000 households in dwellings, owned and
managed by the States and Territories, that are targeted to
Indigenous people. Of the 12,563 dwellings, 34% were located in
major cities, 22% in inner regional Australia, 26% in outer
regional Australia and 18% in remote or very remote areas.
The vast majority of households in CSHA-funded housing are
paying less than market rent, with 88% of public renters, 86% of
Indigenous renters and 85% of households in community housing
receiving rental rebates. Of the 35,022 new allocations to
CSHA-funded public rental and Indigenous rental in 2002-03, 92% had
an income less than the cut-off for receiving government support
benefits.
'These three reports show us that public and community housing
are being increasingly targeted to low income households that have
additional needs that cannot be met by the private rental market,'
Mr Wilson said.
18 December 2003
Further information: David Wilson, AIHW, tel.
02 6244 1202
For media copies of the reports: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. 02 6244 1032
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability of CSHA
National Data Reports 2002-03: State and Territory Owned and
Managed Indigenous Housing, Public
Rental Housing, and Community
Housing reports.