Last week, PEXA was proud to sponsor the Housing All Australians national breakfast tour. The breakfast events saw 900 industry colleagues in attendance across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. We were also lucky to host a Lunch and Learn session in the PEXA Melbourne offices for employees online and in-person.
Keynote speaker Gregg Colburn, Associate Professor at the University of Washington shared key findings from his research on North America’s housing crisis, which challenged attendees to reshape what we think we know about the causes of homelessness.
According to his research:
- Homelessness thrives amid affluence, not poverty
- Where rental prices are high and vacancies are low, homelessness tends to be high
- “Precipitating events” such as job loss, divorce, addiction or illness are not causes of homelessness, rather they make people more vulnerable to experiencing homelessness where housing is unaffordable or in low supply.
The bottom line: Homelessness is a housing problem.
To address this problem, regions need two types of investments:
- Operating investments to fund housing support, maintenance and services,
- Capital investments to construct housing.
And where housing is difficult to construct, changes in regulations and land use policy are needed.
Read more from Gregg Colburn’s research in his book, “Homelessness is a housing problem.”
As part of our commitment to ESG and creating positive impact in our communities, PEXA is proud to continue to support the work of Housing All Australians, as they mobilise the corporate sector to contribute to a solution to a problem “too big for governments alone to solve.” Since 2022, we’ve been collaborating on an Australian-first digital PRADS Affordable Housing Register (AHR) designed to help tackle the nation’s housing crisis by unlocking private capital to fund affordable housing projects, nationwide.
Taking action
If you’re ready to heed the call to help solve Australia’s housing problem, reach out to Housing All Australians via their website.
PEXA’s ESG Strategy is focussed on creating impact and working towards outcomes by supporting industry and our communities to make positive change. Read more about PEXA’s ESG Strategy progress.
