Tasmania continues to face an ongoing, statewide housing and homelessness crisis. When the next Tasmanian Government is elected in July 2025, its most important challenge will be solving the housing crisis for all Tasmanians – especially renters, those on low incomes, and the increasing number of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. House prices and rental costs are growing faster than people’s income, with the worst impacts on those Tasmanians least able to afford higher housing costs.

This is an opportunity for all parties and candidates to understand and commit to steps to tackle the housing crisis and homelessness head-on. We need to maintain the momentum of the Tasmanian Housing Strategy 2023-43 while considering additional measures to strengthen housing delivery and homelessness support in Tasmania. This pre-election call reflects input from our members, key stakeholders, and evidence of what works. 

Solving Tasmania’s housing crisis will be central to the next term of government

Shelter Tas, as the peak body for housing and homelessness in Tasmania, calls on all parties and candidates to commit to building Tasmania’s future through the following:

1. Taking a strong stance on reversing Tasmania’s housing crisis by committing to increasing social and affordable homes in all areas of the state, by

• Making a long-term commitment to accelerate the supply of social and affordable houses from the current 6% to at least 10% (that is, 1 in 10) of all dwellings to meet the level of current and future need
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• Increasing the investment in social and affordable housing as the State Government’s original commitment of $1.5B for 10,000 homes (announced in 2022) is inadequate to address housing needs in Tasmania
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• Urgently reversing the drift of homes to short-stay accommodation through appropriate regulation to counter the negative impacts of too many long-term rentals being converted to holiday accommodation.
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• 2. Increasing funding for homelessness services by 20%. These services are on the front line of the housing crisis, facing increased pressures and high levels of demand. Increased funding is essential to help sustain services to help more families move out of cars, tents, and hotels and into safe and secure permanent housing, and will match the 2024 commitments by both the Western Australia and Queensland State Governments.
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2. 3. Meeting the housing needs of women and children, and young people, who are spending the longest time waiting for support and social housing. These groups experience the highest risk of the lifelong consequences of homelessness, violence, trauma and housing insecurity and require a dedicated response with targets to meet their urgent needs for housing and support. Our research shows that at least 4,200 homes, with a significant proportion of 3- and 4-bedroom dwellings for women with several children, is required to address this crisis.

Young people are most affected by homelessness in Tasmania, making up 39% of the homeless population in the state. We call for a dedicated youth response with targets to provide appropriate support for people 12 to 24 years of age at risk of or experiencing homelessness, and young renters.

4. Ensuring renters have access to safe, affordable, and secure homes with rights and protections that reflect renting as a long-term tenure.

• This requires an immediate review to strengthen, reform and modernise the Residential Tenancy Act 1997 and improve conditions in Tasmania’s rental market.
• Invest $1.5M p/a in tenancy sustainability and support services for early intervention to prevent homelessness, and to keep people housed upon exiting crisis and emergency accommodation.
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• 5. Increasing funding for specialist skills development, which will strengthen the housing and homelessness sector. Commit to fund Shelter Tas’ highly successful Workforce Development Program at $150,000 p/a between 2025 and 2028. This training program has a strong emphasis on trauma-informed practice, staff wellbeing and retention, while focusing on other topics requested by the sector.

Shelter Tas also joins other community sector peak organisations to support the wider call for appropriate funding and adequate indexation across the community sector. The current base is inadequate to close the increasing gap between funding received and the rising costs of properly delivering community services.

In summary

Housing is the number one cost of living issue for Tasmania. Shelter Tas supports the current 20-year Tasmanian Housing Strategy 2023-43[1], but we know more is needed to end the housing crisis and ensure all Tasmanians have the homes they need to achieve opportunities in education, work, social participation, health and wellbeing.

The housing crisis is most acute for people on lower incomes, who mainly live in the private rental market. Homelessness in Tasmania has increased by 45% between the 2016 and 2021 Census, and over 40,000 Tasmanian private renter households face the challenges of a fiercely competitive private rental market – rents rising much faster than people’s incomes, and low vacancy rates. Meanwhile, the waitlist for social housing is over 5,000 households and, on average, even people with the highest priority applications must wait more than a year and a half (around 86 weeks) for a home.

The key solution to our housing and homelessness crisis is to prioritise, in this election, boosting the supply of social housing that provide affordable rents and long-term security. We will need all successful candidates to the incoming State Government to join our vision for safe, secure, affordable and appropriate housing for all – especially for Tasmanians earning low incomes.

Shelter Tas has written to all major parties and independent candidates to make housing a key priority of their election campaign and to support our 5 key election asks. 

Please see attached supporting documents which was included in our correspondence to candidates: