By Jacob Shteyman in Canberra

Two damning statistics reveal a contradiction at the heart of Australia’s housing crisis – and a potential solution.

In the last census, about 35,000 people were estimated to be homeless in NSW.

Meanwhile, more than 22,000 homes are estimated to be sitting vacant in Greater Sydney.

The discrepancy has brought together community housing providers and property developers, who see it as an opportunity to provide homeless Australians with safe, secure housing.

The National Alliance for Meanwhile Use will connect owners of vacant properties to community housing providers in a bid to rapidly scale up ”meanwhile use” housing – vacant or under-utilised property made temporarily available for short-term accommodation.

Not-for-profits such as Habitat for Humanity Australia will do the work of refurbishing and managing the properties so they can be used as transitional accommodation while they await their next permanent use.

The reason the proposal works is because property owners don’t have to become social workers, said the alliance’s chair Jackson Hills, who is also chief executive of peak housing body National Shelter.

“Frontline service providers and charities can do what they do best and manage tenancies while providing trauma-informed care,” he said.

“Every vacant property represents another opportunity to support people and create housing outcomes while longer-term solutions are being planned, funded, and delivered.”

NSW Housing Minister Rose Jackson backed the proposal.

“There is no single solution to the housing crisis, and we should be pursuing every opportunity to help people access safe, secure housing,” she said.

“That means building more homes, delivering more social and affordable housing, and supporting practical initiatives like Meanwhile Use that can make a difference now.

”No one wants to see homes sitting empty while people are sleeping rough or escaping violence with nowhere safe to go.”

Developer Coronation Property, which has joined the initiative, has already delivered more than 1500 nights of accommodation alongside Habitat for Humanity and the Aboriginal Women and Children’s Crisis Service.

The Coronation House project took less than three months from identifying the right property to the first family moving in.

Refurbishing the property cost around $20,000, a fraction of what it would take to deliver equivalent new housing in the same area.

“If we’re serious about supporting women and children escaping crisis, we need to think differently about the housing that already exists, including homes that may otherwise sit vacant while awaiting future use,” said Coronation Property managing director Joe Nahas.

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