Jamie Bennett believes homelessness is everyone’s problem, and that the property industry has a duty to “not look away”.
If managing director at Stone Real Estate, he understands that real estate is about homes, and if people don’t have safe housing, everything else falls apart, including family, healthcare, education and employment.
“In our industry we cannot look away; we have a responsibility to be part of the solution,” he said.
“At Stone we talk a lot about ‘we grow together, we hurt together’.
“Tackling homelessness is just that: it’s not someone else’s problem, it’s ours as a community.”
Mr Bennett said he had seen the impact of homelessness first hand – locally, through community work and on his travels abroad, where it is often even more confronting.
Jamie Bennett, Managing Director of Stone Real Estate, and the corporate team will take part in A Night Without Home. Image: supplied
“You can’t undo it,” he said.
“And when it happens in your own community, it hits harder.
“It’s easy to say ‘that won’t happen to me’, but the reality is for many Australians it’s just one bad escape.”
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The statistics were alarming. Every night, 122,000 Australians have no safe place to call home, and one in ten Australians are now at risk of homelessness.
Although many often associate sleeping rough with homelessness, this only applies to 6% of those affected.
Most homelessness remains hidden – in the form of couch surfing, living in a car or moving through temporary housing with no guarantee of safety.
The majority of people experiencing homelessness couch surf, sleep in cars or move from one temporary accommodation to another. Image: supplied
The situation has led to the formation of a new national initiative, A House for Everyone Foundationthat unites the real estate industry to help end homelessness.
Backed by leading industry figures from across the country, the foundation aims to raise awareness, raise funds and effect long-term change for people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity.
“Those statistics hold you back,” Mr. Bennett said.
“One in ten means that this is not a peripheral problem. It is our neighbors, our colleagues, our children’s school friends.”
To raise awareness and funds to help end homelessness, members of the real estate industry will spend moneyA night without a home’ the entire month of October.
There are several ways to get involved and take on the challenge, whether it’s couch surfing, a night at the office, sleeping in the car, sleeping outside without the comfort of home or raising money in your own way.
More than 122,000 Australians don’t have a safe place to call home on any given night. Image: supplied
Participants can participate as a team or as individuals and are encouraged to raise money, with the money going to the foundation.
The funding will support the efforts of renowned charities in the fight against homelessness.
Mr Bennett and the Stone Real Estate business team will sleep outside at night and miss the usual comfort of a warm bed and climate control, a reminder of what many Australians live with every night.
Only 6% of people who are homeless have trouble sleeping. Image: supplied
Members of the extensive Stone Real Estate network are also encouraged to take on office-level challenges.
“We participate as a team because that’s how we approach everything at Stone. No one is alone,” said Mr. Bennett.
“It’s our first time, but it won’t be our last.”
Stone Real Estate also gives back to their local communities in other ways.
The company has 70 offices in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and New Zealand, and each office works with local schools, sporting clubs and charities, Mr Bennett said.
At a network level, the company supports initiatives that align with their values, from supporting mental health programs to community development.
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