This time last year, a knock on the door at the rental property they had lived in for 10 years brought a Kelmscott couple’s world crashing down around them.
Mike and his partner, who asked to remain nameless, had been renting the Camillo property on a private lease and were shocked to find out the house was being repossessed due to missed mortgage payments.
“We had a knock on the door from the sheriff, they were looking for the owner but he had already bailed and they said, ‘we’re coming back in two weeks,’” Mike, a former security worker, said.
“They rolled up one morning and said, ‘we’re changing the locks, you’ve got 20 minutes’, they boarded up the house, changed the locks and kicked us out, just like that.
“It was like, where do we go? We grabbed what we could and managed to go to a friend’s place.”
The couple, along with their two dogs, Who and DJ, were given a spot in the driveway of an acquaintance to pitch a tent, where they huddled against the winter weather by night and, by day, made applications to rental properties.
But obstacles faced them at every turn, and after months of housing insecurity, the couple is now sleeping rough on the streets of Kelmscott.
As a couple with two dogs, Mike says their options for temporary accommodation through shelters are nearly impossible.
“You get told, if you want accommodation, get rid of your dogs and you and the Mrs will have to go separately,” Mike said.
“The dogs have been there through thick and thin, it’s like being told to get rid of one of your children.”
Last week, The RSPCA WA, Cat Haven and the Dogs’ Refuge Home collectively wrote to the Premier calling for reform of the WA Residential Tenancies Act to allow pets to live in rental homes and the removal of ‘no ground’ evictions so people have the confidence to ask landlords if they can keep a pet in their home.
They argued that these two amendments alone would go a long way to making renting a more stable, secure and safe housing option for the 700,000 renters in Western Australia.
The Dogs’ Refuge Home reported 297 animals surrender applications in the first three months of 2022, with many people contacting them in emergency after other options for their dog had fallen through or an alternative couldn’t be found.
Dogs’ Refuge General Manager Karen Rhodes said the large majority of those surrendered were from people unable to keep their animals due to the current laws.
Having been moved on by security from a carpark, the couple fell under the good graces of local business owner Ingrid Hall, who has allowed them to set up under cover from the elements at the alcove in front of her shop.
“They have been there day and night through the freezing cold and wet bitter nights and have nowhere else to go,” Ms Hall said.
“To add insult to injury they are visited regularly by those who are on drugs or alcohol and sometimes both.
“The woman one night was even abused and threatened with rape by a drunk who was passing by.
“Fortunately, her partner and two dogs came to her aid, and she now lives constantly in fear,” Ms Hall said.
Mike said he was sleeping when his partner was attacked, forcing him into a physical altercation to protect her.
“I’m not the biggest of blokes, but a lot of these people are drunk and under the influence of drugs.
“Are they going to be armed? Am I going to be the next news report?
“We don’t sleep well; we always have one ear open. It’s frightening.”
Mike said that, despite years of applications for government housing, as well as an email of support from Ms Hall to the Department of Communities, he feels no progress has been made.
In a response to Ms Halls’ letter to the Department, a Client Service Officer’s responded with a four-line email that concluded: “The wait list are extensive due to high demand for public housing.”
Questions from The Examiner to the department about wait times and housing availability were not responded to by deadline.
“These poor people, along with their animals, need a safe place to stay,” Ms Hall said.
“Whether it be in a shed, a caravan or large van that is not being used, so they at least can shelter from those that would do them harm and the elements of the weather until such times as they can find a home of their own.
“Honestly anything is better than what they are experiencing right now.”
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