Carol Carter is an Aboriginal woman living in public housing in Bankstown in Sydney. In September 2014, Carol received a letter from the Department of Housing in relation to relocating her to…
Home means security for me – this is where I feel safe. My home is like my castle, even though it's one room at the back of my landlord's house. I also like to go out, but I value my…
"I am originally from Walgett, Northern NSW. In Walgett everyone knows me as ‘Daughter’. I would like to move back to Walgett, but my children and grandchildren are in Sydney, so I will…
"I grew up on the Northern foreshores of Botany Bay at the La Perouse Aboriginal Reserve AKA ‘Lappa Mish’ in the 1970s and 1980’s. It was great growing up there. The sea was our backyard –…
Women from a refugee background face a multitude of challenges and barriers when trying to find a place to call home in Australia. Like many Australians faced with a sudden change in living…
In this piece, boarding house resident Alison Jolly tells her story: "The housing situation for older single women like me (I’m 61) can be difficult unless they own their own home. Many of…
"I wear many hats: mother, friend, student, teacher, researcher, tenant, wife, country music enthusiast… Each of these, compartmentalised, functions as a well-oiled machine. However, as…
“If we had walked together side by side as a country, walked together as equals, we would have developed in step with each other.” Jim Allen, Coordinator of Murra Mia Tenants' Advice and…
The marginal rental sector serves a valuable role in our housing system, but it is not well-regulated. Unlawful boarding houses – often ordinary houses and flats that have been internally…
The Tenants’ Union of NSW supports the Residential Tenancies Amendment (Occupancy Agreements) Bill 2011 introduced by the Member for Sydney, Clover Moore, and commends it to other Members of…
Some renters are not covered by the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 or any similar legislation. These marginal renters – including boarders, lodgers and many share house occupants – have no…
'Occupancy principles' are part of the occupancy agreements model of law reform implemented by the Australian Capital Territory in its Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (ACT). The TU…
