Mum desperate to find a rental

A mother of three who has lived in the same rented house since she came to Geraldton three years ago fears she and her family are about to become homeless.

“My lease ran out in February and after your lease runs out they give you 60 days,” she said.

“So I’ve been looking for six weeks.”

Fleur Newcombe has children aged 12, 15 and 16; two dogs, two cats and a steady job as a health worker in the alcohol and other drugs sector.

“At work I deal with homeless people every single day and I’m like, ‘Gee, I’m going to be like you soon’,” she said.

“So I’m really trying to raise awareness about how bad the situation is.”

Ms Newcombe said she had already applied for about 15 rentals.

“I knew something was up when I went to the first one because there was about 40 people at the one viewing,” she said.

“I thought: ‘What’s going on here?’”

According to REIWA data the Geraldton rental vacancy rate fell from 4.8 per cent in September 2019 to one per cent in January this year.

Ms Newcombe said she cringed every time she saw messages like: “We’re moving to Geraldton in two weeks, any private rentals?” on Geraldton Noticeboard Facebook group.

“We are not a communist country, we can’t stop people coming in, but it’s not very good at all,” she said.

“We don’t want people who are established in Geraldton to have to leave their job and move home to somewhere else.”

Ms Newcombe said potential landlords were welcome to call her on 0427 277 342.