State Government-leased Broome rentals sit empty as desperate locals and workers outbid for homes

The State Government has allowed 21 privately owned rental properties to sit vacant during Broome’s housing crisis which has seen as little as two properties on the market and forced many to resort to living in their cars or leaving town. After months of questioning, the Department of Communities revealed to Parliament there were 27 vacant Government Regional Officer Housing properties in Broome, roughly three times the number of houses currently on the rental market. The department owns six of those properties, with the other 21 leased from private market. The Broome Advertiser has asked numerous questions regarding the housing crisis of Housing Minister John Carey. Mr Carey did not answer any questions, instead referring the Advertiser to the Department of Communities. The department in April would not confirm whether it would expand its GROH housing stock in Broome. The Advertiser understands the department has approached a number of Broome real estate agents seeking to increase its housing stock. An average subsidy of 24 per cent on market rent is offered to GROH housing tenants in Broome, raising fears private tenants would be priced out the market if GROH stock increased. When questioned on whether any extra housing stock would be built or bought from the private market, the department’s chief financial officer Michael Crevola said there were no plans to build additional government dwellings in Broome. “Where there is not suitable existing housing available, leasing and/or purchasing opportunities are sourced through the private property market, in line with requirements across the Housing portfolio,” he said. When asked why the properties would be sourced from the private market despite the empty properties, Mr Crevola said the client agency determined the allocation of properties to employees, not the department. “It is not uncommon for a GROH client agency to have an allocated property that is vacant as this enables them to recruit and deploy suitable employees, including health staff, teachers and police,” he said. Opposition housing minister Steve Martin last week slammed the State Government’s response to the housing crisis. “People are living in cars. People are living in tents in backyards or in the bush. People are over-bidding on rentals,” he said. “When people turn up to a rental property these days, there is a queue outside the front door.” Referring to a recent Advertiser article highlighting the story of mother-of-three Broome resident Uweinna Albert, Mr Martin was critical of Minister Carey’s response. “Minister Carey has described what is happening in our State at the moment as a “rental tightening”,” he said. “I will explain what a rental tightening in Broome means: there is a 0.0 rental vacancy rate. That means Uweinna Albert had nowhere to rent — not anywhere. There is a waiting list at the caravan park. “By the way, this is a new definition of homelessness — Uweinna is fully employed. She is not like some of the other people we see.” Mr Martin said homelessness was a complicated issue with a variety of contributing factors, but being fully employed was not usually one of them.