Sole voices: Experiences of non-home-owning sole mother renters

Abstract

Housing is both a key indicator of, and contributor to, social advantage/disadvantage. Opportunities for wealth creation, affordability, sense of security and belonging to community and place, level of choice, self-esteem and self-determination are all linked to housing and, more specifically, to tenure type with its resulting (and often hidden) inequity. Issues relating to affordability and availability of housing have come to the forefront in recent times, with Australian property prices rising beyond the means of many low-income households leaving some groups excluded from achieving the sought after goal of home ownership. In this paper, I explore the impact of non-home ownership on a particularly significant and disadvantaged social group, sole mother families who do not own their homes and who subsequently rent their housing. A key concern addressed in this paper is the notion of home itself and how achieving a sense of home can be problematic when renting.

Key words:

• affordability
• tenure
• renting
• exclusion
• sole mothers