Hi, and thanks for reading this! I'm Emily, an autistic bisexual who's on a permanent disability pension, typing on behalf of myself, my equally disabled father Greg (a 65-yr old man who suffered a debilitating stroke), and my loving partner, Cassandra, who does her best to care for us both, and our three beloved cats. Some of you might know us as Skull and Kat, if you're here for our shared writing community. (Hi!)

To summarize our nightmare: earlier this month our real estate agent informed us that they will not be renewing our lease out of the blue, despite an earlier assurance that they would extend it for another year. The reasons cited are a shock to us, especially when matched with a frankly terrifying proposed rent increase and the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, and it's looking increasingly likely that we'll be asked to leave on short notice over December.

Any help from VCAT or other public services will take months, if not longer, and as a disabled family of three we might not have that kind of time. Fixed income doesn't go very far, and the ongoing crisis has stretched what we have to it's very limit. And even if we did, somehow, our cats are another matter entirely - short stays in Australia can be horrifically expensive, and I don't know what I'd do if something happened to any of them because of this.

To break down the price a little: to move we need, at minimum, bond and the first month's rent (currently anywhere from $1506 to $1,738 each in the price range we can barely afford to rent). The former, we can handle temporarily. The latter, unfortunately, we can't save up for while still paying for our current place. I've added a little to account for the fees and GFM's own cut. While there's more moving parts in, well, moving then just this - I'd rather focus on the most essential piece first.

Thank you for hearing us out. We know it's a lot to ask, especially these days. But I don't know how we'll make it through this otherwise. And if you can't help at the moment - which we understand completely, things aren't kind to anyone at the moment - it would mean the world to us if you could at least share it where you can.

And hopefully in the new year, things will be better. For all of us.