PRICE RISES SEE LOCALS PUSHED OUT

A LABRADOR mum says long-time Gold Coast families are being forced out of the city by escalating rents and food bills.

Sally Whitaker, 40, said she and her 15-year-old son were facing homelessness within days because their landlord was selling up and they had been unable to find anywhere else affordable.

“I’ve been living on the Gold Coast since I was 12 years old and never had a problem getting a house,” Ms Whitaker said. “Any other time I would have got a place by now but there’s no chance. We’ve got locals who have been here all their lives getting kicked to the kerb because you’ve got someone coming up offering more money.”

Ms Whitaker gets help from Centrelink to pay rent. The amount paid is raised each year in line with the Consumer Price Index, which in 2021 rose by 3.5 per cent. However, the median rental price in Labrador spiked 22 per cent for houses to $650 per week and 16.3 per cent for units to $483 per week.

“We’re getting smashed,” Ms Whitaker said. I don’t know what to do.”

Ms Whitaker said the rising cost of groceries was an added headache she could not afford. “It’s bad. The groceries, everything has gone up,” she said. “I’m a severe anaemic, I need to eat red meat. And I can’t afford to.”

* Have a rental that might be suitable for Sally? Email keith.woods@news.com.au