Homeless support service responds to rental crisis fallout

Tina Reynolds, CEO of Orana Support Services, said the service is currently working with 311 active clients - not including children - who are in need of assistance with housing.

"The majority are sleeping rough," Ms Reynolds said.

"A lot of the 311 are in over-crowded houses, temporary accommodation, and a small percentage are sleeping out on the street."

"Out of the 311 we have 113 on our waiting list that we haven't been able to get to yet because I can't overload my staff with clients. They work with anywhere from 20-30 clients each."

The average weekly rent in Dubbo will rise by $100 this year according to analyst Propertyology, with head of research Simon Pressley likening the market to "the proverbial seagulls fighting over a chip".

Mr Pressley said the crisis was due to a lack of investors purchasing properties in Dubbo over the past six years.

Ms Reynolds sees the fallout from the housing shortage through her work on the frontline.

"The rental crisis is making a huge impact on Dubbo and across NSW and I don't think we are seeing the worst of it yet," Ms Reynolds said.

"We are seeing more elderly people being evicted from their property they have been in for years, due to the owners now being able to get more rent.

"We're also seeing the affordability of the houses is out of the range of the clients. When they do go to put in for private rentals, a lot of them aren't even looked at. It is quite concerning for us.

"We are going to see this area of homeless people increase within our region."

Ms Reynolds said some people choose to sleep rough. But for those who are searching for permanent housing, Orana Support Services would continue to assist them.

"At Orana Support Services we're looking outside the square and looking at all options on how we can get people into safe, secure housing," Ms Reynolds said.