Sydney’s first dedicated affordable housing for trans women to be built in Darlinghurst
May 21, 2024Sydney’s first affordable housing project specifically for trans women will be established in the inner-city suburb of Darlinghurst, following the sale of City of Sydney properties as part of the council’s excess land program.
According to ‘The Guardian’, the seven properties are being sold “at a significant discount” to Common Equity New South Wales, which will collaborate with the All Nations Housing Co-operative to create housing for women within this “highly at-risk” group. Sydney lord mayor, Clover Moore, expressed pride in the council’s ability to help provide affordable housing.
“Trans women are some of the most vulnerable people in our society and often face rejection and isolation from their families of origin and the broader community,” Moore said.
“Despite the progress we’ve made as a society in celebrating the contributions and achievements of LGBTIQA+ people, too many trans people regularly experience discrimination and exclusion.
“Providing safe and affordable housing for trans women is essential for their wellbeing. We want all people to feel confident in themselves.”
Image Credit: Canva
Under the excess land scheme, unused or underutilised properties owned by the council are identified and sold to organisations working to provide housing for those most in need.
Proceeds from these sales are then reinvested into the city’s affordable and diverse housing fund, which provides grants for future housing projects, as the council addresses persistent homelessness and an increasingly tight rental market.
The Gender Centre social worker and transgender woman, Aurora Green, noted that transgender women often face barriers to accessing housing due to mismatched documentation.
Green explained that a dedicated service would make it far easier, safer, and more comfortable for trans women to access housing.
“Even though it’s illegal to discriminate against someone based on their gender, it’s still very easy when someone’s submitting an electronic application, you can see conflicting details and give this to someone else,” she said. “There’s very, very little protection there.”
She added that a dedicated service would provide women at different stages of transition more freedom and peace.
“In a dedicated service, there’s so much more flexibility for people that are at different stages of their medical transition or whether they want to medically transition at all,” Green said.
“When there’s a place that’s going to understand why that [ID] information may conflict and be understanding and helpful with that, that’s just so important … It also brings the trans community together.”
Additionally, two more properties in Potts Point are being sold by the city to the B Miles Women’s Foundation to provide housing for women with complex needs.
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