FIVE OLDER WOMEN FINALLY HAVE A HOME THANKS TO AN AUSTRALIAN-FIRST IDEA
Five older women who had been couch surfing, house sitting or relying on family for a roof over their heads now have homes of their own.
They are the first residents of an Australian-first co-housing project in Darra, in Brisbane's south west, which opened this week.
A new way for older women to own a home
The project is run by the charity Sharing with Friends, which says it has been seven years in the making.
As the ABC reported on November 9, each woman paid $120,000 and signed a 50-year lease.
Each has her own self-contained studio, complete with a kitchen and a private courtyard.
They also share a communal kitchen, a living room and a central courtyard, so company is never far away.
How the model works
The charity owns the land, and the women pay for their own electricity and rates, just as homeowners would.
When a resident leaves, or after her death, her $120,000 is returned with CPI added.
The figure was chosen because it reflects the average superannuation balance of a woman at retirement age.
Rather than being thrown together, the first group chose each other through a series of workshops run by the charity.
The architect, Eloise Atkinson, designed the model pro bono.
Meet two of the residents
Ann Singh, 79, struggled financially after her divorce and moved between rentals while house sitting.
She called the arrangement "such a perfect solution" for women who have some savings but not enough to buy.
Robyn Duffy-Jones, 60, is the youngest of the group.
A single mum who has rented all her life, she was knocked back by the banks when she tried to borrow to buy in her mid 50s.
Queensland property prices then climbed sharply, and she feared she might end up living in a tent.
She has always wanted to own her own home, and she described the project as a saviour.
Why older women need new options
Older women are described as the fastest growing group of homeless people in Australia.
Census data from five years ago showed a 40 per cent rise in homeless women over 55 across the previous decade.
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, women and girls make up 60 per cent of the estimated 289,000 people seeking homelessness help.
Sharing with Friends president Susan Davies calls these women the "missing middle".
They are too well off to qualify for social housing, but cannot afford to buy a home on their own.
Ms Davies said the charity set out to fix what she sees as a systemic failure affecting single older women.
Philanthropic donations got the project off the ground, despite rising building costs and planning delays.
Ms Davies said the charity received virtually no help from government.
What happens next
Sharing with Friends wants to roll the model out across the country.
The charity says councils and governments need to cut red tape and write this type of housing into planning laws.
Ms Atkinson noted the Darra homes had to be approved as a boarding house, even though that is not really what they are.
She suggested larger councils could lead the way so planners understand how the model works.
The next project would need a buy in of about $200,000, as the average woman now has roughly $150,000 in super.
If you are worried about housing
If you or someone you love is facing housing stress later in life, you are far from alone.
It can help to speak to a financial counsellor early, and to look into local housing services and community organisations.
For these five women, though, the worry is over, and they can finally unpack for good.
Their story is a hopeful reminder of what is possible when a community decides that no woman should face her later years without a safe place to live.
