In the 12 months to September 2021, property values in Australia increased by more than 20 per cent, the highest growth in value reported for more than 30 years.

Rent inflation across regional Australia also surged by 12.4 per cent in the year to August 2021, while private rental supply fell by six per cent across regional NSW.

Comparatively, wage growth in the private sector increased by just 2.4 per cent, and the public sector rose a dismal 1.7 per cent. The disparity between wages and housing cost has put many behind the eight ball in securing a home.

Kirrilly Salvestro, deputy CEO of Griffith's Linking Communities Network, said that the situation is dire.

"It's absolutely getting worse. Housing stock has dwindled, the high price of rent is pushing people out of the market ... People have to choose in this climate whether they pay rent or feed their children. Add in the complexities of young people needing housing, and then domestic violence - it's just a massive social issue," Ms Salvestro explained.

She said that the situation was growing increasingly grim, and red tape was holding up potential solutions.

"The Griffith affordable housing strategy is good and that's a big step. For organisations like us, it just doesn't go far enough though. We need social housing properties and that's a whole government approach."

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"We need to, as a community, recognise that although we don't see street sleepers in Griffith, there is a lot of homelessness. People tend to couchsurf, but they are still homeless."

On a silver lining, she had hope that the new council would be able to make further progress in addressing the homelessness crisis and was hoping to work together with them to benefit the community.

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