StatsNZ data says LGBT+ have less personal disposable income than non-LGBT+. Photo / Getty Images
StatsNZ data says LGBT+ have less personal disposable income than non-LGBT+. Photo / Getty Images
Some members of the queer community fear it may be being discriminated against when trying to find a rental or job as data shows the community is lagging behind in housing and income.
StatsNZ data, released late last year, showed lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) people weremore likely to rent, less likely to own their own home and housing costs were, on average, more than $3000 extra annually than for non-LGBT+ people.
According to StatsNZ, 7300 or 2.9 per cent of people in the Bay of Plenty are LGBT+.
Rotorua-based Labour MP Tāmati Coffey said he once felt he had to pretend to be in a heterosexual relationship because he thought being gay would affect his chances of getting a rental.
"These are things that people have to do to sometimes fit in."
He said it was sad he had to pretend.
"I would have loved another way.
"Just trying to find rentals is really bloody hard ... unfortunately trans people that I know have been discriminated against in terms of trying to find accommodation so they feel housing insecurity."
The latest figures from Trade Me showed the median average rent in Tauranga hit a record high of $600 a week in November, up from $520 in the same month in 2020.
The same data revealed the weekly median rent in Rotorua was $520, compared with $450 in November 2020.
Coffey said it was tough enough to try to get a job.
"Often trans people in the workplace face discrimination whether you're a man or a woman, and all of those really personal questions come up and it can be actually quite debilitating for trans people to find employment and then stay in employment."
Coffey said creating equal opportunities for employment and inclusive workplaces would help improve low personal disposable income for LGBT+ people.
"We've got a lot of work to do to support our trans community, whether it's in the workplace or in housing, but the start of it actually is just a bit of visibility too."
University of Waikato psychology senior lecturer Dr Jaimie Veale was the principal investigator in a national study into the health and wellbeing of trans and non-binary people in Aotearoa.
Veale saw high rates of homelessness among transgender people - 19 per cent - and discrimination with being able to access places to rent was another big issue.
"There's a lot of talk among business communities about being able to bring your whole self to work and how important that is to be successful and really thrive in your workplace... a lot of trans people are really struggling to do that."
The report showed in the preceding 12 months, 57 per cent of participants did not disclose they were trans or non-binary at work because they feared discrimination.
Veale said in the same period, almost one in seven delayed transitioning, fearing discrimination.
"Almost one in five quit a job because of how they were treated as a trans or non-binary person."
One in 10 participants received worse pay or conditions than co-workers, were not allowed to use the bathroom that matched their gender, were denied promotion or were fired or forced to resign because they were trans or non-binary.
But more than half had been treated fairly and with respect at work after disclosing they were trans or non-binary.
Counting Ourselves is doing a follow-up study this year.
Tauranga's Gordy Lockhart, who is a gay man, believed mental health issues around coming out could prove obstacles to excelling at work and education.
Tauranga local Gordy Lockhart speaks about LGBT+ from his experiences. Photo / File
He believed because LGBT+ people statistically earned less it impacted homeownership.
"There's potential for discrimination as well ... I love Tauranga to bits but there is quite a heavy religious content to the demographic.
"Nobody ever says you're not getting a house 'cause you're gay."
Rotorua principal director of Professionals McDowell Real Estate Steve Lovegrove said the business did not treat clients with different lifestyles any differently.
Rotorua principal director of Professionals McDowell Real Estate Steve Lovegrove. Photo / File
Lovegrove said within his team there were LGBT+ staff and he believed them to all be homeowners.
The customer service team matched clients to appropriate salespeople and if clients asked they could be assigned a salesperson that will relate to them as opposed to whoever was on duty, he said.
"I'm a [red]-blooded, middle-aged, church-going guy, but it doesn't mean that I go around judging other people."
