After two and a half years of homelessness, 66-year-old Lynette has finally found safety and stability in community housing – one of many older Australians impacted by the growing housing crisis.
“I can tell which of the new residents have been homeless,” Lynette said, overlooking the street from the balcony of her community housing apartment in Knox.
“When they arrive, they’re the ones who look like they’re coming from a war zone.
“The way they walk, they’re so downtrodden, wounded and exhausted. It’s like the experience just weighs on their body now. That’s what living homeless does to you, you see.
“In their faces, they look very unsure and uncertain, like maybe this isn’t real. Because that’s how you feel. You’ve had the rug pulled out from under you for so long that you just expect it to happen again.”
A few years ago, Lynette, a semi-retired teacher from The Basin, found herself couch surfing and homeless after being forced to leave her rental property. She lived in this situation for two and a half years before finding her current community housing accommodation.
Her story is becoming all too common amid Australia’s worst-ever housing and homelessness crisis, but she is determined to raise her voice to help bring awareness to such a serious community issue.
In October 2022, Star Mail spoke with Lynette after heavy rain flooded her house for the fourth time since she had moved into accommodation in The Basin. Her story was picked up by Guardian Australia in March this year, as well as ABC Radio and Melbourne’s Saturday Mornings program.
“I had been with two other homelessness services, but it wasn’t until I got to Anchor that I felt really supported. The other ones struggled to find somewhere for me. They said I didn’t have enough income for a private rental, and that there were no community housing options for me.
“Eventually, they closed my case because they said they couldn’t do anything else for me.
“That’s how it goes for a lot of people. I guess that’s where the lack of trust and the weariness starts, because you’re just constantly given bad news, so you start to expect it and not go looking for more help.”
Luckily, Lynette followed up on a referral to Anchor, where she was connected to Leanne, one of Anchor’s experienced case managers.
“I told her my story. I had spent more than nine years on the Victorian Housing Register. I’d been two and a half years homeless.
“She spent quite a bit of time just listening and suggesting options. We came up with nothing concrete at that point, but she looked at me and she said, ‘I will not be closing your case. We will stick with you, and we’ll just see what we can do to help you.
“I felt like I had someone that really believed in me and wasn’t going to give up.”
Lynette’s journey through homelessness was a long one, which included speaking in the media, getting mentioned in the Victorian Parliament, and advocating to the Knox Council – all while trying to maintain a normal life.
Lynette said she believes that to really address the homelessness crisis, Australians need to change their understanding about the people who are becoming homeless at the moment.
“When the news article came out, I had friends call me who didn’t know I was homeless. They were shocked and said ‘oh I had no idea,’” she said.
“I want as many people as possible to know what the face of homelessness looks like. Because if people knew just how normal homelessness is, how common it is, things would get changed a lot quicker.
“When I think back to before it all started, I probably had a really bad view of people who are homeless. I assumed it was ‘druggies’ or people who had made bad decisions. A lot of people think that people who are homeless have somehow done something which justifies them being homeless… but it’s just not true.
“A lot of people think that it can’t happen to them. You know what? You have some health problems. Something happens to the rental you are living in. If your marriage breaks down. You could find yourself homeless within the blink of an eye. I think people don’t know how vulnerable they can be if things suddenly change.”
In Lynette’s apartment building, there are so many more stories like hers: a cook in an aged care facility, an elderly man with 40 years of CFA service under his belt, mothers who you would pass at school drop off and have no idea of the situation they’ve been living in.
This is what has made Lynette so fearless and honest in bringing attention to her own experience.
“I want as many people as possible to know what the face of homelessness looks like. Because if people knew just how normal homelessness is, how common it is, things would get changed a lot quicker,” she said.
Like every other weary person who experiences long-term homelessness, Lynette said she was uncertain when she moved into her community housing apartment.
“When the manager of the building took me around, she was bouncing with excitement, saying, ‘This is your permanent home, this is your forever home’. And I‘m going, I’m exhausted. I don’t know if this is going to work out. I’m glad you’re excited. But I didn’t have the enthusiasm,” she said.
“It takes time to decompress from being homeless. It takes time to heal from the exhaustion and the physical and mental scars.
“But after a while, you start to see warmth and joy coming back into people’s faces.”
“It sounds really corny, but a place that really is my home that I can stay, that I don’t have to move from, just means the world to me.
“Privacy, safety, independence, comfort – you take them for granted, but if you find yourself without a home, these are all things you lose.”
