When Yeppoon local Brandi Gilligan's rent increased by $120 a week she decided to try her luck finding another rental home more within the family's budget.
It seemed like a sensible idea at the time. Ms Gilligan had never experienced obstacles to renting before, her partner had a stable income and the pair had a good rental history.
But a statewide housing crisis in regional areas has stopped the family in their tracks.
After months of application rejections the family moved into a hotel three weeks ago in a last-ditch effort to avoid homelessness.
"We've applied for multiple rentals, and we've been told that there are about 40 to 50 applications per house," Ms Gilligan said.
Applications for government housing or emergency accommodation through social services have ended with the same dead end.
"They said that all of the houses they have available already have families in [them], and they've got a waiting list of over 50 families," she said.
"Everyone's pretty much told me there's nothing they can do to help."
For Ms Gilligan, house hunting has added an "emotionally draining" stress at a time when the family are grieving the death of their eldest daughter from a medical condition.
"It's really hard, we lost our three-year-old daughter in July. She passed away unexpectedly," she said.
"So [not having a house] it's just a really big blow to our family. It's really hard to try to cope and get our things together while we don't have a secure home."
The family had been paying upwards of $110 a night at the hotel, but on Monday evening a local hotel owner got in touch to offer a room, free of charge, until they could find a secure house.
Widespread problem
Queensland Council of Social Service (QCOSS) chief executive Aimee McVeigh said families like Ms Gilligans' are at the coalface of a statewide housing crisis that has shown no sign of improving in 2022.
"Unfortunately, [Ms Gilligan's] really awful story is not a unique story," Ms McVeigh said.
"We are seeing rental increases across the state and that's because there is such reduced supply over the last little period.
"[Recently] interstate migration into Queensland has been at a 20-year high. It's the biggest movement into any state in Australia.
"We don't have enough housing as it is. We've got increased demand, reduced supply, and that results in higher rents. It doesn't matter where you sit in terms of your income, that's going to have an impact."
In terms of the worst-affected locations across the state, Ms McVeigh said it was a "pretty quick race to the bottom".
"In Brisbane, we do have some rental availability, but as soon as you get outside of Brisbane, you're pretty much looking at zero rental availability across the state," she said.
Ms McVeigh said about 36 per cent of Queenslanders were currently renting, and that was set to increase.
"Half of that 36 per cent are families, so people living with little kids … if renting is going to be the long-term option for so many Queenslanders, we do really need to make sure that people have a secure and safe place to call home.
"We've got 50,000 Queenslanders languishing on the social housing register."
Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) data for the December 2021 quarter showed record low vacancy rates in many parts of the state, with places like Gympie at just 0.3 per cent, while in Maryborough it was 0.1 per cent.
The low vacancy rates have also contributed to increased median rent prices.
The median rent for a four-bedroom house in the Rockhampton region had increased by 20 per cent last year, from $400 to $480, according to figures released by the Residential Tenancies Authority this week.
In Cairns, it increased from $490 to $540, Townsville $410 to $440 and the Whitsunday Regional Council area from $425 to $485.
Room for improvement
In last year's state budget, the Queensland government committed $1.9 billion over four years to increase social housing stocks and pledged to create a $1 billion housing investment fund.
The government also passed legislation designed to end 'without grounds' evictions.
But Ms McVeigh said there was much more the government could do to improve the situation, including further rental law reform and an urgent investment in social housing.
"It means also that we look at tax reform and look at how we can ensure that there are more houses available for people," she said.
A spokesperson from the Department of Communities, Housing and Digital Economy said anyone needing housing assistance could also visit their local Housing Service Centre, or phone 13QGOV (13 74 68).
"People experiencing, or at risk of homelessness, can phone the Homelessness Hotline on 1800 474 753 for information on where they can find support, accommodation, meals or showers," the spokesperson said.
In the meantime, Ms Gilligan will continue the search.
She said the family had even considered trying their luck in other areas of the state, including Townsville, but quickly gave up on the idea.
"Even in those towns, the rental situation seems to be exactly what the rental situation is here," she said.
"It gets to a point where you feel hopeless because you've just done that many rental applications."
