The program, closely tied in with Byamee’s hugely successful Inspire the Desire initiative, is aimed at arresting a growing rental property shortage in Moree.

Byamee outreach educator Leigh Smith said that after recently surveying all real-estate agencies in Moree, he found only 10 residential properties available for rent – despite official census figures showing Moree’s number of rental properties as above the NSW average.

Mr Smith says the rental property shortage has been exacerbated by the number of uninhabitable dwellings in Moree.

“A quick drive around Moree shows that there are numerous dwellings vacant, and many have been for some time,” Mr Smith said.

“And it doesn’t seem to be an isolated problem, either; the last census shows that more than 900,000 dwellings were vacant across Australia.”

Homelessness figures nationwide have risen in the past two years as well, a situation brought to national attention recently when hundreds of business leaders, including re-elected prime minister Kevin Rudd, spent a night “sleeping rough” to raise awareness as well as funds for the St Vincent de Paul Society.

“There is an increase (in homelessness) this financial year compared to last financial year and there are a number of reasons why, including higher unemployment figures,” Mr Smith said.

“Homelessness is not discriminatory against people out there working and earning a living, either. 

“There is an increasing amount of individuals and families becoming homeless because the properties they are, or were once, renting are being sold, meaning they have nowhere else to go,” he said.

Byamee’s Inspire the Desire program’s primary target is to provide the basic skills needed to enable participants to access and retain employment. It was implemented eight years ago and has maintained an impressive success rate.

“Inspire the Desire goes a long way to reducing long-term homelessness,” Mr Smith said.

The program offers on-the-job experience as well as OH&S and first-aid training. It also offers Moree a service, with the provision of free labour to those in the community who fit the program’s criteria. 

“We now hope to widen those criteria by helping to repair run-down properties and bring them up to rentable standards,” Mr Smith said.

“Byamee is willing to work with landlords who have properties that have not been rented for lengthy periods. As a result, these properties may need repairs to bring them up to scratch – a good clean-up and a lick of paint here and there, that sort of thing,” he said.

“We can undertake general repair work as well as chores like cleaning up yards, gardening and mowing. We will have a limited amount of funds available per property to have these works carried out, and getting these dwellings up to scratch will go a long to helping clients of Byamee obtain accommodation.”

Byamee also works closely with other support services aimed at helping clients suffering hardship and accommodation setbacks. 

“Moree has never been in a better situation, with a number of great services that can supply support to tenants and assist with issues that can sometimes arise and see tenancies spin out of control,” Mr Smith said.

“As well as that, the homeless sector as a whole is presently undergoing reforms that will provide even greater help for those in need, and hopefully stop potential rental issues from occurring before they can take hold.”

Moree property owners who feel they fit Byamee’s proposed works program criteria can contact Leigh Smith on 6752 1550 during business hours.