Community
24 October, 2026
Mum, daughter desperately seeking accommodation
Time is running out for Kylie Smith and her daughter Laurah. They have to move out of their Canyonleigh rental property next month but they have nowhere to go.
Time is running out for Kylie Smith and her daughter Laurah.
They have to move out of their Canyonleigh rental property next month but they have nowhere to go.
“I’m at my wits end,” Ms Smith told The Southern Wire this week.
“I can’t be living on the streets with my daughter.”
Ms Smith said she had been looking for somewhere else to stay since July without success.
No matter where she turns, she hits another brick wall.
Her current lease has been extended but the extension is about to end.
It has been a tough few months and the stress is starting to take its toll.
Laurah, 24, was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease as a newborn and received a kidney transplant last year.
She is immunocompromised and requires ongoing medication to protect her transplanted kidney.
She is also experiencing serious liver problems.
Her condition means that going to a refuge or a share house simply isn’t an option.
Kylie – who cares for her daughter full-time – said they were also restricted in terms of where they can go geographically.
Laurah’s specialist is based in Bowral, and she is constantly in and out of the Bowral and District Hospital and Goulburn Base Hospital.
She also attends regular medical appointments in Liverpool.
So they need to find somewhere in the Wingecarribee, Goulburn or Wollondilly LGAs as soon as possible.
“It is heartbreaking to watch my daughter deal with so much while also worrying about where we will live,” Ms Smith said this week.
“Laurah needs a safe and suitable environment because of her complex medical needs.
“The uncertainty surrounding our housing situation is placing enormous emotional strain on our family.”
Ms Smith said he had reached out to “countless” charities, businesses, organisations and individuals without success.
“We are still struggling to find a solution,” she said.
She said she had been offered the use of a vacant property in Bigga on which to place a mobile home, but it was too far out.
She has also been offered a caravan, but it wasn’t fitted out.
Laurah is on the waiting list for government housing but is only in line for a one-bedroom home – meaning she won’t be able to receive the 24-hour care she needs.
“I have spent countless hours making phone calls, sending emails and explaining our circumstances to people who might be able to help,” Ms Smith said.
“I keep reaching out because I cannot give up on finding somewhere safe for my family.”
She started a GoFundMe page in the hope that she might be able to purchase a mobile home but ongoing medical costs are making that impossible.
They are already going without meals to cover the bills.
“I do the best I can with what I’ve got,” Ms Smith said.
“I want to make it clear that I am not asking anyone to buy us a house or vehicle,” Ms Smith said.
“I am simply hoping to connect with someone who may have a suitable property, an affordable campervan or motorhome, or knowledge of an opportunity that could help our family.”
“I have reached out to so many people and explored so many possibilities, but we are still searching.
“It is exhausting to keep asking for help, but as a mum, I have to keep trying.”
Ms Smith said the ongoing uncertainty was starting to affect her own health and she was looking forward to a resolution.
“I’m sick of sitting here crying and feeling sorry for myself,” she told The Southern Wire.
“We are not asking for a luxurious life.
“We are asking for safety, stability and somewhere to call home.” To contact Kylie email kyliesmith0750@gmail.com To donate to her GoFundMe page go to https://gofund.me/c9b46a1ed
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