Nearly 6,400 Hunter families on housing waitlist as rents surge
Almost 6,400 households in Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and the Hunter are waiting for social housing. Demand is growing.
More than 765 of those households are on the priority list. The waitlist includes low-income families, essential workers, elderly people and women and children fleeing violence.
Aziza Anwari, a former journalist and women's rights advocate, fled Taliban threats in Afghanistan. She lived in temporary housing and then expensive private rentals.
Four years ago, she got stable social housing. Rents in Lake Macquarie have risen nearly 7 per cent in six months to March 2026.
The empty rental pool has shrunk to only 1.5 per cent, half what the market needs. The Community Housing Industry Association is calling for a $26 billion fund.
This would build 50,000 new social and affordable homes across NSW by 2050.
- 6,400
- Households waiting for social housing
- 765
- Priority waitlist households
- 7 per cent in 6 months to March 2026
- Rent increase in Lake Macquarie
- 1.5 per cent
- Rental vacancy rate
Why it mattersHousing shortages drive up rents and lock out low-income workers from areas where jobs exist. This forces people into unsafe living situations or homelessness.
AustraliaThe Hunter's crisis reflects a statewide problem: New South Wales now has a record 72,232 households on the social housing waitlist, affecting working Australians across every major region.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 3 h ago
