Homelessness Crisis Hits Record Levels
The Salvation Army is urging urgent national action as record homelessness and housing stress leave more Australians without a safe place to call home.
Australia’s homelessness crisis has reached unprecedented levels, prompting The Salvation Army to declare safe and affordable housing a national emergency as Homelessness Week shines a spotlight on the growing number of people struggling to keep a roof over their heads.
The charity says homelessness is no longer an issue affecting only those sleeping rough. Increasingly, working Australians, families with children, older people and young people are finding themselves unable to secure or maintain stable housing amid rising rents, limited housing supply and ongoing cost-of-living pressures.
More than 122,000 Australians are currently experiencing homelessness, while almost 289,000 people sought assistance through The Salvation Army’s homelessness services during the past year. At the same time, almost 169,000 households remain on public housing waiting lists nationwide, highlighting the growing pressure on Australia’s housing system.
Findings from The Salvation Army’s 2026 Red Shield Report, based on responses from more than 4,400 people receiving emergency relief across Australia, paint a concerning picture of widespread housing insecurity.
The report found 75 per cent of respondents were experiencing housing stress, rising to 86 per cent among private renters. Around 60 per cent had been unable to pay their rent or mortgage on time during the previous year, while 37 per cent feared losing their home altogether.
Housing instability is also forcing many Australians into precarious living arrangements, with 16 per cent of respondents reporting they had couch surfed or lived in their car during the past 12 months. For families, the financial strain is especially severe, with almost 64 per cent of households with children unable to afford adequate winter clothing or shoes.
The Salvation Army’s Head of Homelessness, Dr Jed Donoghue, said frontline workers were seeing increasing numbers of people seeking help who had never previously imagined they would need homelessness services.
“Rising rents, limited housing and ongoing cost-of-living pressures are pushing more Australians to breaking point. We’re seeing working people, families, older women and young people seeking homelessness support because they simply can’t afford a safe place to live,” Dr Donoghue said.
He said homelessness extended well beyond rough sleeping, with many people living in cars, couch surfing or staying in overcrowded homes because they had nowhere else to go.
One New South Wales woman described the reality of living in her vehicle, saying she struggled to prepare meals and endured sleepless nights worrying about finding food and enough fuel to reach basic facilities.
Despite common perceptions, rough sleeping represents only 6.2 per cent of homelessness in Australia. The most common form is severely overcrowded housing, accounting for 39 per cent of people experiencing homelessness.
Women and children make up almost three-quarters of those seeking assistance from The Salvation Army’s homelessness services, while more than 50,000 young people required support during the past year. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples also remain disproportionately represented among Australians experiencing homelessness.
Over the past year, The Salvation Army delivered almost 339,000 sessions of care, provided more than 653,000 crisis accommodation bed nights, served over 1.3 million meals through residential services and supported nearly 35,000 people at risk of or experiencing homelessness.
During Homelessness Week (3–9 August), Salvation Army teams across Australia are hosting sleep-outs, community forums, fundraising activities and awareness events to highlight the issue and encourage community action.
The organisation is calling on governments to expand early intervention programs, adopt Housing First approaches that prioritise permanent housing, strengthen wraparound support services and significantly increase investment in social and affordable housing.
The Salvation Army warns that without decisive action, increasing numbers of Australians will continue to fall into homelessness despite safe and secure housing being a fundamental need for every person.
