Hi, my name is Tay and I’m fundraising to help my friend Rhi and her four-year-old daughter urgently secure stable housing.

After leaving a family violence situation 13 months ago, Rhi has spent the past year trying to rebuild safety and stability for herself and her child in an increasingly impossible rental market. She has done everything people tell you to do: applied for properties, tightened her budget, asked for help, and kept going even when it felt pointless, always putting her daughter first.

She hasn’t stopped trying. She’s just run out of options.

For the past two weeks, Rhi and her daughter have been homeless, spending much of that time living in a tent.

This situation has become even more urgent as her daughter is due to start kindergarten next month, making stable housing essential for her routine, wellbeing, and sense of safety.

Rhi has reached out to homelessness services and support organisations, only to be turned away again and again. She has been told by multiple organisations that they cannot assist because they do not want to place her in housing they consider “at risk of homelessness.” This has been said despite the fact that she is already homeless, leaving her stuck in a situation where support is denied because any realistic housing option is viewed as unstable, even when having no housing at all is clearly worse.

She also cannot access government bond assistance because her income is considered too low, despite the fact that there are no rental properties available within the budget ranges these systems expect her to find.

Rhi can afford up to $500 per week in rent. This is not about luxury or being selective. It is about finding a safe location with basic amenities that support recovery after trauma and are appropriate for a young child.

An additional challenge is that any housing also needs to be pet-friendly, so Rhi can be reunited with her dog, Jet. Jet is currently being cared for by a friend while Rhi and her daughter are homeless. Jet has been an important part of Rhi’s daughters sense of safety and trauma recovery, and being separated from him has been another loss layered onto an already difficult situation. Reuniting them is about restoring stability and support, not preference or comfort.

The main barrier is the upfront cost. Saving bond and two weeks’ rent while homeless, caring for a four-year-old, and covering day-to-day survival costs is incredibly difficult.

Being homeless isn’t cheap. Food, transport, and basic necessities cost more when you don’t have a stable base. Every attempt to save is undermined by the cost of simply getting through the day.

Rhi is determined to rebuild stability for her daughter and return to work, but securing safe housing has to come first. Without a home, everything else becomes harder.

What this fundraiser will help cover

Funds raised will go directly toward:

• Bond and rent in advance to secure a rental (up to $500/week)

• Temporary accommodation while attending inspections and applying for housing

• Essential basics needed to stay safe and functional while homeless

Every donation helps move Rhi and her daughter out of homelessness and toward stability.

If you’re able to donate, thank you. If you can’t, sharing this fundraiser still makes a real difference.

A four-year-old shouldn’t be starting kindergarten without a home because the system decided her family didn’t fit the right criteria.