Chace and Marcella’s story
“We wake up and still think is this real, are we really living here. It’s just mind blowing at this stage, it doesn’t feel real.”
Learning to navigate the housing system
With support from the YFS Housing 1st team Chace and Marcella are now both thriving in their new home and planning for their future goals.
Facing homelessness and disengaged from school, Chace and Marcella were referred to YFS by their school. With support from the YFS Housing 1st team they are now both thriving in their new home.
The priority for the Housing 1st team was to find them short-term crisis accommodation, then they worked with Chace and Marcella to help them find longer term accommodation.
The team taught them how to navigate the housing system and complete a housing application, as well as guiding them on how to sustain a tenancy. They learnt the importance of building a good rental history by doing things like maintaining a good relationship with their property manager, paying rent on time, and preparing for housing inspections. They also gained some important life skills such as budgeting, keeping on top of bills, and managing paperwork.
Their YFS Case Worker Mitchell guided them on the process of applying for housing and how to make a good impression at a housing interview. As a result, they were successful in finding rental accommodation through Brisbane Housing Corporation and are settled in their new home.
Chace and Marcella are now planning for their future goals. They are saving money to buy a car, and eventually buy their own home. Marcella is working in the fast-food industry, and Chace is looking for work with support from a Brisbane Housing Corporation Employment Officer and is hoping to do further training.
“Before we were living in the moment,” Marcella says. “Now we are in a lovely home, we are saving, and we are able to plan ahead. I feel good about where we are, and I feel more optimistic about the future. People ask us ‘how are you doing so well?’ and I think I wouldn’t have known what to do without YFS and we wouldn’t be in the place we are today.”
Mitchell says it’s a credit to Chace and Marcella how far they’ve come in a short space of time. “They both put in a lot of effort and made sure to stay engaged and keep in contact throughout,” he says. “From my perspective, knowing that young people have their own stuff going on behind the scenes, it’s really important to be flexible. I explained to them how I work and asked what works for them, then we established some ground rules, and it was a matter of trial and error from there.”
Chace and Marcella both feel that their confidence has increased. Chace explains, “We used to be very quiet… we never used to be open to talking, we kept to ourselves. Now we’ve learnt the importance of good communication and not to be afraid to report things like maintenance. I feel more confident now to have a discussion if something comes up.”
“We’re really thankful for everyone who’s helped us and that’s why we’re where we are today. We wake up and still think is this real, are we really living here. It’s just mind blowing at this stage, it doesn’t feel real.”