‘Get a room’: Students fight for affordable housing as rents soar

By JUSTIN COOPER

A student campaign,  named ‘Get a Room’, that is pushing for affordable student housing has reached the ears of the City of Sydney Council. Deputy Mayor Sylvie Ellsmore called on council to hear the difficulties that university students face in accessing affordable housing.   

The ‘Get a Room’ campaign proposes multiple strategies to combat soaring rents and a lack of affordable housing for students. This campaign coincides with advice requested by the Council by the Chief Executive Officer regarding student discussions surrounding housing and cost of living pressures in late February, and is now asked to consider the ‘opportunities’ within the campaign. 

The strategies mentioned within the notice include ending rent hikes with a “national two-year rent freeze”, providing a limit on “student housing at 30 percent of income” and raising welfare programs for studying and working students. Further strategies involve limiting and investigating landlord capabilities, abolishing the private market and building additional public housing to ‘fill the massive shortfall’ by 2027. 

Both Australian and international students are involved in the campaign to address the large percentage of young people in Sydney and the decline of living standards. 

The notice requests that Lord Mayor Clover Moor write to the NSW Premier and Australian Prime Minister. Cr Moore is also asked to write to Vice-Chancellors of local universities, such as UNSW, USyd and UTS to develop their own housing accessibility schemes.  

Deputy Mayor speaks on housing affordability for students

Ellsmore recognises the significance of the campaign saying, “If implemented, the student’s plan would genuinely address the affordability crisis in our city. Without it, things are only going to get worse.”

Sydney Council is also planning to meet with stakeholders in the coming weeks in a roundtable discussion to continue developing strategies. 

Ellsmore noted the ‘Get a Room’ campaign’s strategies “will benefit more than just students”, being able to “help the 57,000 + applicants on the NSW social housing waiting list” from the additional public housing construction. Ellsmore and Sydney Council will continue “working on a range of strategies to increase affordable housing”.

“Like the climate crisis, you can’t solve the affordability crisis with only one strategy, or only one level of government, with the council continuing to lobby for changes with State and Federal Governments,” she said. 

The ‘Get a Room’ Campaign has been created and led by the National Union of Students, which is composed of multiple Sydney university student council, education and welfare groups. 

Recent protests earlier this month highlighted Sydney university student’s struggles and frustrations amongst increased rent prices, quality of living spaces and overall economic inequality. 

For Sydney student Tau Talifolau-French, the cost of living has impacted his day to day life.

“I have noticed a rise in other areas like groceries,” he said. 

Whilst Talifolau-French notes he has been able to balance finances, he has seen fellow students needing to defer or put studies on hold due rent increases at his university accommodation.  

“Easing the financial burden on students, (so they) would not need to sacrifice deferring their degrees or social lives,” is a change Taliolau-French recommends governments consider to ensure students continue his studies successfully.  

Cr Ellsmore’s motion was amended and passed at the March 13 City of Sydney Council meeting.