The 2031 Reckoning: Gen X Women Demand Homes, Not Promises

UNSEEN - https://unseen.house/ This article is in full support of UNSEEN – A multimedia project sharing the hidden experiences of women’s homelessness and housing insecurity.

By 2031, Australia will face a homelessness crisis, disproportionately affecting the 3.9 million Gen X women born between 1966 and 1980. These women have endured decades of economic uncertainty - two recessions, low wages, rising living costs, and caregiving responsibilities that have eroded their financial stability. With median annual earnings around AUD 40,000—largely from part-time or casual work—they have been locked out of wealth-building opportunities like homeownership. Their average superannuation balance of AUD 176,824 is far below what is needed to fund a secure retirement. If nothing changes, many of these women will face a grim future of housing insecurity.

Helen’s story illustrates how the intersection of caregiving and financial precarity can devastate lives. A 54-year-old freelance designer, Helen managed to scrape by after her divorce. But when her mother developed dementia, she cut back on work to care for her. Every hour spent caregiving—work that society devalues—further depleted her already meagre savings. With rental prices climbing, Helen lives one emergency away from eviction. Like many Gen X women, she expects to work well into her 70s to survive, assuming she can find employment in a job market that discriminates against older women.

Linda, an Indigenous woman aged 57, reveals the additional barriers women from marginalised communities face. After escaping domestic violence, Linda searched for housing but encountered systemic discrimination. Indigenous women, like Linda, are far more likely to experience homelessness, exacerbated by the lack of culturally appropriate services and limited access to public housing. Without targeted support, they remain among the most vulnerable in Australia’s housing crisis.

Sue’s story offers another dimension to the challenges faced by older women. After 40 years of working as a cleaner, Sue had no choice but to rent. When her rental property was sold, she was evicted and left with nowhere to go. Despite her lifelong contributions to the workforce, her superannuation was not enough to secure housing. Now living in her car, Sue represents the harsh reality for many working-class Gen X women, who were forced into casual roles with no retirement benefits.

These stories illustrate the harsh truth: many Gen X women have spent decades working in low-paying industries, often interrupted by caregiving responsibilities, only to find themselves trapped in cycles of poverty and insecurity as they age. The economic impact of these disruptions is profound. Women perform thousands of hours of unpaid caregiving over their lifetimes, which not only reduces their earning potential but leaves them with inadequate superannuation. As they approach retirement, the question of how they will afford aged care or nursing homes—where fees exceed AUD 55,000 per year—remains unanswered.

Australia’s delayed reckoning has been masked by decades of economic prosperity. While baby boomers benefited from stable jobs and affordable housing, Gen X women were hit hard by recessions, wage stagnation, and skyrocketing property prices. With the majority locked out of homeownership, they are now ageing in a rental market that offers little security. Long-term renters, especially older women, live with the constant fear of rent increases and eviction—threats that will only worsen as housing supply dwindles.

Preventing this crisis requires urgent and bold policy reform. Finland’s "Housing First" model offers a successful template. This programme guarantees stable, permanent housing as a first step, treating housing as a human right rather than a reward for stability. Australia must adopt this model and significantly expand its public housing stock, prioritising older women. Rental subsidies should be proactive, activating at the first sign of financial distress, and public housing waitlists must be shortened through large-scale investment.

Superannuation reform is essential. Caregiving years—during which women like Helen and Sue are unpaid but essential to society—must count toward retirement savings. Introducing superannuation top-ups for carers would ensure that unpaid work does not leave women impoverished. Employment policies must also address age discrimination, creating flexible job opportunities for older women to re-enter or stay in the workforce.

Governments must recognise that the cost of inaction will be far greater than the cost of intervention. Every dollar invested in homelessness prevention saves three dollars in healthcare, justice, and emergency service costs. Providing stable housing and financial support would allow older women to continue their vital contributions to society through caregiving and community involvement. Secure housing improves health outcomes, reduces hospital visits, and alleviates pressure on social services.

The 2031 tipping point is fast approaching, and without immediate intervention, the consequences will be catastrophic. Australia’s treasurers and policymakers must confront the reality that delaying action will only deepen the crisis. These women—like Helen, Linda, and Sue—have carried the nation on their backs, through decades of work and unpaid care. It is time for Australia to carry them in return, with homes, security, and the dignity they deserve.?

The question is no longer whether Australia can afford to act—it is whether the nation can afford not to.

https://unseen.house/ This article is in full support of UNSEEN – A multimedia project sharing the hidden experiences of women’s homelessness and housing insecurity. UNSEEN reveals the invisibility of women’s experiences and offers an innovative opportunity to empower artists to bring women from diverse background together. UNSEEN has travelled across NSW engaging communities on women’s experiences and their stories. SUPPORT the UNSEEN project as it engages decision makers, governments and communities alike.

Footnote: The calculation behind the 2031 tipping point for older women’s homelessness in Australia comes from projections by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI). Their research indicates that by 2031, approximately 440,000 older households will struggle to afford suitable housing due to a combination of rising living costs, declining homeownership rates, and a growing dependency on insecure rental accommodation.

However, the Albanese government’s housing initiatives face significant challenges. The government has committed to building 30,000 new social and affordable homes through the Housing Australia Future Fund over the next five years, including 4,000 homes specifically for older women and those affected by family violence. This fund is part of broader efforts, such as the National Housing Accord, which aims to construct 1.2 million new homes by 2029 to address the wider housing crisis. Yet, critics argue that the pace and scale of this development will not meet the escalating need, especially among vulnerable groups like older women without property assets or sufficient savings for retirement.

The government’s commitments are ambitious, but their delivery capacity will be tested. With long-standing delays in housing construction and limited infrastructure in place to quickly address rental instability, these efforts may not adequately prevent the projected surge in homelessness by 2031. For Gen X women—many of whom remain in insecure work and will need to fund costly aged care in the coming years—further systemic reforms are critical. Superannuation top-ups for caregivers and enhanced rent assistance would provide much-needed stability. However, these reforms are yet to materialise at the necessary scale.

Ultimately, Australia’s ability to meet its housing crisis hinges on the successful and timely rollout of these housing programs, as well as the government’s capacity to address the underlying economic inequalities driving homelessness among older women.