Aussie family of five forced to live in 'very small' caravan amid rental crisis

A desperate mother and her family have been left with no choice but to move into a "very small" caravan after they were priced out of the rental market amid soaring competition.

Linda Thompson, 49, recently left her $430-per-week Campbelltown home which she says was the result of a dispute with her agent and landlord over the condition of the property.

She says the home, which she has lived in for more than 15 years, had an extensive mould problem which had left her family sick, while drainage issues meant there was regular flooding at the site. Ms Thompson claims the issues were never properly addressed.

The caravan Ms Thompson is now living in. Source: Supplied
The caravan Ms Thompson is now living in. Source: Supplied

Yet while dealing with the devastation of losing the home her children have grown up in, the rental crisis in NSW also looms large, with Ms Thompson fearing there may be no route out of her dire situation she now finds herself in.

"I've been denied for everything at the moment," she told Yahoo News Australia. "To get anything similar to what I had is now going for $600."

"It's shocking. I'm going to inspections with 20 to 30 people and the lines are getting longer and longer."

Ms Thompson with two of her daughters at the caravan. Source: Supplied
Ms Thompson with two of her daughters at the caravan. Source: Supplied

Such scenarios at viewings are now a common sight across Sydney, with Leo Patterson Ross, CEO of the Tenants Union of NSW, likening it to the Hunger Games.

Until she finds somewhere, Ms Thompson and her family have been forced to park their caravan in the front yard of her eldest daughter's house share. With no water, they have been kindly granted access to the home's bathroom but Ms Thompson says that cannot last with three others living there.

The mother, who is unable to work following a neck injury she sustained last year, is living in the tiny space with her partner, her two daughters, aged 11 and 15, and soon her son will move in after failing himself to find a rental.

The caravan has one double bed at one end, and a makeshift sleeping space at the other. Source: Supplied
The caravan has one double bed at one end, and a makeshift sleeping space at the other. Source: Supplied

Renters in sub-standard conditions at a 'major disadvantage'

Had she known this is where she would have ended up, she says she may have handled her situation at the previous rental differently.

Yet Mr Patterson Ross told Yahoo News Australia earlier this month renters are at a "major disadvantage" when trying to raise issues with a property as they potentially face a no grounds eviction amid a severe affordability crisis.

He says renters are often forced to simply accept sub-standard conditions to keep a roof over their heads.

"The solutions are simple, but first require government and industry to accept that housing is an essential service and the provision of essential services always comes with obligations to the community — whether around quality, price or availability," Mr Patterson Ross said last year.

In a message to other renters in a similar situation, Ms Thompson urged them to stay strong.

"We shouldn’t have to settle for below standards or have our homes at risk when we speak up," she said.

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