Frontline organisations responding to Australia's housing crisis are operating at breaking point, reporting sustained increases in demand, escalating complexity, and diminishing capacity to help, according to Everybody's Home.
The national housing campaign's 'No Way Out' sector survey of dozens of frontline organisations found nine in ten (89%) reported increased workloads over the past year, while almost all (98%) expect demand for their services to rise further in 2026.
More than four in five (82%) organisations reported the housing crisis is either significantly affecting their daily operations or severely threatening the effectiveness of their programs.
The crisis is increasingly affecting the workforce itself, with seven in ten frontline organisations (71%) reporting increased stress or burnout among their workforce, while more than three quarters (78%) said housing insecurity is impacting their staff or volunteers.
Almost three-quarters (72%) said the increased workload has contributed to staff turnover in the past year, and more than one quarter of respondents (27%) said they'd considered leaving their role due to workload or housing-related pressures.
Impacts of increased workloads on organisations |
% Responses |
Higher demand for services or programs |
84.85% |
Increased complexity of cases or support needs |
80.30% |
Need for additional funding or resources to respond |
78.79% |
Greater need for coordination with other organisations or sectors |
74.24% |
Increased workload for staff |
72.73% |
Increased stress or burnout among staff |
71.21% |
Difficulty meeting service targets or performance goals |
45.45% |
Other |
15.15% |
Source: Everybody's Home organisational survey - Table 4 'Impacts of increased workload on organisations.' Respondents could select multiple values
Of the more than 70 organisations surveyed:
Many were clear about what is needed to relieve frontline services in the next Federal Budget, with more than eight in ten (85%) calling for increased investment in public and community housing as the most important action government can take
Nearly half (46%) said the impact of the housing crisis is so severe it is threatening the effectiveness of their services
More than four in five (85%) reported higher demand for services, eight in ten (80%) cited more complex casework
More than seven in ten (73%) reported increased workload for staff
More than eight in ten (82%) said their workload increased this summer
Half (49%) said they were frequently forced to turn people away during the December-January period
Three quarters (75%) identified homelessness or risk of homelessness as the most significant impact of the crisis on their clients
Everybody's Home spokesperson Maiy Azize said the findings paint a stark picture of a sector that's at breaking point and frontline services trapped in crisis mode.
"These organisations are at the frontline of the crisis and they're telling us they can see no way out. They're having to help more people, with more complex needs, for longer periods of time," Ms Azize said.
"This is not a short-term spike or seasonal surge. Housing stress is getting more extreme every year, putting relentless pressure on staff and stretching organisations to their limits.
"With so many people in need of help, services are reaching the limits of how they can help. Staff turnover and burnout is becoming more common, and services are being forced to turn people away because there are so many people in need. In a grim irony, the housing crisis is affecting the very workers who are on the frontlines of it.
"This crisis is the result of decades of policy choices that prioritise supporting investors over social housing for people who need it. We're seeing growing numbers of people who are doing everything right being failed by the system.
"Services right across the sector are calling for the federal government to take responsibility with a national response that matches the scale of the emergency, by ending the social housing shortfall, winding back tax handouts for property investors, raising income support and protecting renters.
"Without action, more and more people will need help and workers will keep burning out. In this year's Federal Budget, the government has the opportunity to take action and prevent housing insecurity from deepening further and becoming more entrenched."
