Parity Articles

Parity Article: Seeking Support and Navigating Services as Older LGBTIQA+ person

It's extrememly hard for older people on low incomes to find affordable rentals. Its even harder for LGBTIQA+ older people. 

Read the article from Parity here

Parity Article: Older Women, Housing insecurity and homelessness

Housing for the Aged Action Group's Home at Last service is the first point of call of many older women living in Victoria who find themselves on the brink of, or experiencing, homelessness. 

Parity Article: How to improve and protect the rights of older people living in retirement housing

The power imbalance between tenant and landlord in Australia in 2024 is well known. But for people living in retirement housing there is often an even greater power imbalance between them and their housing provider. 

Read the article from Parity here

Parity Article: Australia's Housing Crisis - Experiences from Older People who have lived it

Marie Sillars and Wendy Morris from the National Alliance of Seniors for Housing, and Susan Hawkeswood from the Ageing on the Edge NSW Lived Experience Group.

As Australia's housing crisis has worsened, a diverse group of older people from across the nation has come together with a common goal. By speaking about their own experiences of this crisis they hope to build an awareness of how it impacts people as they grow older, and to add their voices to those calling for a fairer housing system, one which ensures everyone living in Australia has access to a safe, stable, accessible and affordable home. 

Read the article from Parity here

Parity - The System is Failing Older Women: We Need Specialist Services

Most older women experiencing homelessness have not been homeless before and have experienced ‘conventional’ housing histories throughout their life. This means they often
do not identify as being homeless or know where to turn for help. For this reason, the cohort of older women at risk of homelessness is often described as ‘invisible’.

HAAG, in partnership with Debbie Faulkner of the University of Adelaide (and now University of South Australia), has documented the homelessness trends of
older people in all states and territories over the last five years.

PDF icon Read the Parity Article by Gemma White, Kobi Maglen and Melis Cevik

Parity - More Older Women Are Experiencing Homelessness Than Ever Before: I Was One of Them

National Alliance of Seniors for Housing, and Older Women Lost in Housing member Penny Leimhuis shares her experiences of homelessness.

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Parity - LGBTI Older Women

The public perception of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people is largely one of a young, affluent community. However, the reality is that within the LGBTI community, a large  share of LGBTI adults are older, of low-socioeconomic status and at risk of homelessness. LGBTI elders are more likely to live in poverty and experience homelessness, compared to the mainstream population due to both the complexity of their experiences and difficulty accessing services.

PDF icon Read the article by Rebecca Walton

Keeping the Roof Over Her Head: Precarious and Lost Homeownership Among Older, Single Women

Older woman’s home owning status in Australia has been inextricably linked to partnering with a male because historically, single women were denied home loans. A critical life event such as illness, unemployment or loss of partner can have enduring consequences for housing security. Women on average are paid 17 per cent less than men throughout their life course and have half the superannuation and savings on retirement, with 55 per cent of women 60 years and older having no superannuation at all. Casualisation, interrupted workforce participation and unpaid domestic and caring labour mean that women have less diverse assets and greater financial risk in later years.4 Family violence is the leading cause of homelessness
in women of all ages. Associated financial abuse has multiple impacts including damaged credit ratings and loss of the family home. Older women also have greater barriers to sustaining employment due to age and sex discrimination, and greater pressure to financially support adult children.

PDF icon Read the article by Frances Every and Leonie Bessant

AirBnB: A Bleak House in Paradise

Airbnb has changed the global rental scene, by increasing prices and removing properties from long- term rental. Areas such as coastal New South Wales, Southern Queensland and Tasmania that attract tourism but also have large permanent renting populations are experiencing housing pressure as a result. The Northern Rivers region of NSW is one such place.

PDF icon Read the article by Leonie Bessant

Housing Related Challenges for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Communities

This paper describes some of HAAG’s work in this area, including a growing focus on ensuring culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) voices are part of our voice in the sector and the community more broadly.

Read the article here

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