This paper is in five parts. In section 1, the significance of private rental housing in Australia is outlined, and contemporary Australian issues are related to overseas developments and local concerns during the 1960s and 1970s. In section 2, some problems involved in defining the private rental sector are examined, the focus being on different types of landlords. In section 3, trends, issues, and problems are discussed, this involving a detailed examination both of the extent to which availability of dwellings has changed and of the growing problem of affordability which particularly affects poor tenants. In section 4, government policies during the 1970s are assessed, and it is argued that, in combination with market processes, these exacerbated the problems faced by poor tenants. In the concluding section, some of the issues are redefined, and it is argued that new policies in themselves are less important than a greater commitment to equity.
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