Renters like me are in a constant juggling act – often giving up security in search of affordability. It shouldn’t be this way

Our housing and taxation systems encourage landlords to accumulate multiple properties and treat them as assets, rather than homes that people live in, writes Ada Lester. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

In my mid-20s, and after six years of renting, I know that the holy trinity of housing is finding a place that is affordable, safe and secure – colloquially known as having a “nice” landlord. But these things should be basic rights in any system of housing and not dependent on the whims and moral compasses of individual homeowners.

The federal government has found a way to pass its Help to Buy housing bill, but meanwhile Australia is on track to become a nation of majority renters, and there is scarce policy to meaningfully protect us. Rental affordability has reached all-time lows in almost every state in Australia, according to the latest national Shelter-SGS Economics and Planning rental affordability index. Thousands of renters are experiencing housing stress, which means they are spending more than 30% of their annual income on rent. The suburb that I live in has been classified as severely unaffordable.