He’s 66, sick, and grieving—now they want to evict him
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When long-standing support systems shift behind closed doors, vulnerable Australians are often the ones left in limbo.
One such case has quietly unfolded in Perth, highlighting the human cost of housing decisions made beyond public view.
What’s at stake is far more than just a roof overhead.
When Noongar elder Harvey Coyne was hospitalised yet again, this time following another heart attack, his mind wasn’t just on survival.
It was also on where he’d go once discharged—and whether he’d still have a home to return to.
Sitting up in his bed at Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, his voice raw and unsteady, the 66-year-old summed it up plainly: ‘Without it, I’m pretty well buggered.’
Coyne had already been dealt more than his share of hardship. He lived with severe heart disease—requiring a triple bypass surgery—as well as emphysema, hypertension, and blindness in one eye.
Earlier this year, he broke his hip in a fall. On top of it all, he carried the trauma of being removed from his family during the Stolen Generations.
But just as he faced yet another life-threatening medical event, a new fight had landed on his doorstep—this time from his housing provider.
Housing Choices Australia, which managed Coyne’s community housing unit in Kenwick on Perth’s south-eastern outskirts, had moved to evict him.
The no-fault eviction notice—still legal in Western Australia—arrived while Coyne was in hospital, grieving the death of his nephew who had lived with him.
Coyne’s advocates claimed the timing and method of the eviction amounted to cruelty. If successful, they said, it would leave him homeless and force him back onto the streets—something he thought he had left behind in 2021 when he first moved into the property.
The organisation had previously raised concerns around noise, visitors, and cleanliness—claims Coyne rejected. Court filings also revealed he underwent 10 property inspections in a single year, something he said he ‘struggled to address…due to my age and health’.
The case attracted the attention of respected health figures, including Emeritus Professor Fiona Stanley—the former Australian of the Year and namesake of the very hospital where Coyne lay.
In a letter sent to Housing Choices Australia in March, Stanley expressed ‘grave’ concern over the eviction effort, especially in light of Coyne’s need for surgery.
‘This is an extremely serious operation with a number of risks for Mr Coyne. It is imperative that he has stable and secure accommodation in which to prepare for this procedure and then to recover and rehabilitate afterwards,’ she wrote.
‘Mr Coyne’s condition is life-threatening, and it is inconceivable to me that he should face homelessness at this time.’
His case was due to be decided in the Perth magistrates court next week.
Housing Choices Australia said it could not comment on Coyne’s specific situation due to ongoing legal proceedings and privacy obligations.
Its CEO, David Fisher, issued a statement saying the organisation was ‘committed to providing safe, secure, and appropriate housing for all our residents and supporting them to sustain their tenancies’.
He added: ‘As a not-for-profit community housing provider, we operate under the same standards and regulatory requirements as government housing agencies, and we take that responsibility seriously.’
The group also told advocates that it had been working with the state government to find a ‘sustainable housing solution that considers both his immediate and longer-term needs’.
But Coyne’s supporters argued the core issue ran much deeper.
According to housing advocate Jesse Noakes and several academics, Coyne’s struggle reflected a larger, systemic problem. The unit he lived in would once have been public housing, but over time the state shifted thousands of such properties to community housing providers like Housing Choices Australia.
In a briefing paper, human geographer Dr David Kelly from RMIT’s Centre for Urban Research noted that while public housing stock had declined by 7.4 per cent in the past decade, community housing units had risen by 61.4 per cent. That increase was aided in part by generous government subsidies.
Kelly said this trend had ‘redefined both the nature of the tenancy and the rights attached to it’.
‘Tenants like Harvey, had they remained in public housing, would have been afforded stronger on-paper protections against eviction, and subjected to fewer behavioural interventions disguised as support,’ he wrote.
He added that community housing organisations (CHOs) operated under different frameworks and priorities.
Housing Choices Australia was a major player in the sector. As of mid-2024, it owned 3,099 housing units and managed another 4,395. Its reported assets sat at $1.2 billion, with financial records showing about half of its revenue—roughly $33 million—came from government funding.
Publicly, the group stated its vision was for ‘all people in Australia to have a safe, affordable home and the opportunity to thrive’.
But WA Greens MLC Tim Clifford believed Coyne’s ordeal showed how that vision wasn’t always realised in practice.
‘It is clear from Mr Coyne’s case that the choice to outsource public housing to big NGOs means that there is less transparency, less accountability and less access to justice for renters,’ Clifford said.
He described the potential eviction as ‘unconscionable’ given Coyne’s fragile health and life circumstances.
As judgment loomed, Coyne remained in hospital—waiting not only for heart surgery, but for an answer that could decide whether he had a home to heal in afterward.
With more older Australians relying on housing providers in their later years, do you think enough is being done to protect tenants like Harvey? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
In a previous story, we looked at how the housing crisis is hitting older Australians hard—and how little support they’re getting from major political parties.
For seniors like Harvey, whose health and stability depend on secure housing, this crisis isn’t just a headline—it’s personal.
If you’re wondering what’s being done at a policy level to fix the problem, that piece is worth a look too.
Read more: Older Australians are also hurting from the housing crisis. Where are the election policies to help them?
One such case has quietly unfolded in Perth, highlighting the human cost of housing decisions made beyond public view.
What’s at stake is far more than just a roof overhead.
When Noongar elder Harvey Coyne was hospitalised yet again, this time following another heart attack, his mind wasn’t just on survival.
It was also on where he’d go once discharged—and whether he’d still have a home to return to.
Sitting up in his bed at Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, his voice raw and unsteady, the 66-year-old summed it up plainly: ‘Without it, I’m pretty well buggered.’
Hospitalised elder faces eviction while recovering. Image source: Facebook/NITV
Coyne had already been dealt more than his share of hardship. He lived with severe heart disease—requiring a triple bypass surgery—as well as emphysema, hypertension, and blindness in one eye.
Earlier this year, he broke his hip in a fall. On top of it all, he carried the trauma of being removed from his family during the Stolen Generations.
But just as he faced yet another life-threatening medical event, a new fight had landed on his doorstep—this time from his housing provider.
Housing Choices Australia, which managed Coyne’s community housing unit in Kenwick on Perth’s south-eastern outskirts, had moved to evict him.
The no-fault eviction notice—still legal in Western Australia—arrived while Coyne was in hospital, grieving the death of his nephew who had lived with him.
Coyne’s advocates claimed the timing and method of the eviction amounted to cruelty. If successful, they said, it would leave him homeless and force him back onto the streets—something he thought he had left behind in 2021 when he first moved into the property.
The organisation had previously raised concerns around noise, visitors, and cleanliness—claims Coyne rejected. Court filings also revealed he underwent 10 property inspections in a single year, something he said he ‘struggled to address…due to my age and health’.
The case attracted the attention of respected health figures, including Emeritus Professor Fiona Stanley—the former Australian of the Year and namesake of the very hospital where Coyne lay.
In a letter sent to Housing Choices Australia in March, Stanley expressed ‘grave’ concern over the eviction effort, especially in light of Coyne’s need for surgery.
‘This is an extremely serious operation with a number of risks for Mr Coyne. It is imperative that he has stable and secure accommodation in which to prepare for this procedure and then to recover and rehabilitate afterwards,’ she wrote.
‘Mr Coyne’s condition is life-threatening, and it is inconceivable to me that he should face homelessness at this time.’
His case was due to be decided in the Perth magistrates court next week.
Housing Choices Australia said it could not comment on Coyne’s specific situation due to ongoing legal proceedings and privacy obligations.
Its CEO, David Fisher, issued a statement saying the organisation was ‘committed to providing safe, secure, and appropriate housing for all our residents and supporting them to sustain their tenancies’.
He added: ‘As a not-for-profit community housing provider, we operate under the same standards and regulatory requirements as government housing agencies, and we take that responsibility seriously.’
The group also told advocates that it had been working with the state government to find a ‘sustainable housing solution that considers both his immediate and longer-term needs’.
But Coyne’s supporters argued the core issue ran much deeper.
According to housing advocate Jesse Noakes and several academics, Coyne’s struggle reflected a larger, systemic problem. The unit he lived in would once have been public housing, but over time the state shifted thousands of such properties to community housing providers like Housing Choices Australia.
In a briefing paper, human geographer Dr David Kelly from RMIT’s Centre for Urban Research noted that while public housing stock had declined by 7.4 per cent in the past decade, community housing units had risen by 61.4 per cent. That increase was aided in part by generous government subsidies.
Kelly said this trend had ‘redefined both the nature of the tenancy and the rights attached to it’.
‘Tenants like Harvey, had they remained in public housing, would have been afforded stronger on-paper protections against eviction, and subjected to fewer behavioural interventions disguised as support,’ he wrote.
He added that community housing organisations (CHOs) operated under different frameworks and priorities.
Housing Choices Australia was a major player in the sector. As of mid-2024, it owned 3,099 housing units and managed another 4,395. Its reported assets sat at $1.2 billion, with financial records showing about half of its revenue—roughly $33 million—came from government funding.
Publicly, the group stated its vision was for ‘all people in Australia to have a safe, affordable home and the opportunity to thrive’.
But WA Greens MLC Tim Clifford believed Coyne’s ordeal showed how that vision wasn’t always realised in practice.
‘It is clear from Mr Coyne’s case that the choice to outsource public housing to big NGOs means that there is less transparency, less accountability and less access to justice for renters,’ Clifford said.
He described the potential eviction as ‘unconscionable’ given Coyne’s fragile health and life circumstances.
As judgment loomed, Coyne remained in hospital—waiting not only for heart surgery, but for an answer that could decide whether he had a home to heal in afterward.
With more older Australians relying on housing providers in their later years, do you think enough is being done to protect tenants like Harvey? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
In a previous story, we looked at how the housing crisis is hitting older Australians hard—and how little support they’re getting from major political parties.
For seniors like Harvey, whose health and stability depend on secure housing, this crisis isn’t just a headline—it’s personal.
If you’re wondering what’s being done at a policy level to fix the problem, that piece is worth a look too.
Read more: Older Australians are also hurting from the housing crisis. Where are the election policies to help them?
