The ongoing trend of increasing housing cost pressures on lower-income Australians over the past decade provides the context for the high incidence of financial stress, particularly among tenants in low-rent areas of Sydney and Melbourne.

This summary report suggests that in 2018, most tenants in social housing were satisfied with services from their housing provider. Nearly all tenants cited feeling more settled and being able to manage their rent better as benefits of living in social housing.

This report examines the role of policy in shaping social housing pathways through a review of current social housing operational policies. It considers application processes, eligibility criteria, rent, use of premises, tenant-initiated transfers, portfolio management and tenancy management by landlords.

This report details exploitative practices that international students encounter in Sydney’s informal housing market, both when finding housing and as tenants. The report finds that in this under-regulated space, landlords take advantage of international students’ vulnerability and their lack of knowledge of local conditions and their legal rights.

Build-to-rent (BtR) is a form of residential development involving apartment blocks or complexes purpose-built for rental occupation and held in single ownership as long-term revenue-generating assets. A key aim of this research has been to assess the possible scope for a market-rate BtR product to act as a vehicle for affordable housing provision.