Sherele Moody Offers Her Investment Property for Free for the Next Decade

Sherele Moody, renowned for her tireless advocacy work, has long been illuminating the grim realities within Australian society. Now, she’s channeling her efforts into providing a beacon of hope for those in need.

Recently, Moody completed an ambitious project: the $35,000 renovation of her first home, a one-bedroom apartment she bought in Melbourne last September. This transformation was made possible through a successful crowdfunding campaign.

Instead of settling into this newly refurbished space or capitalizing on the competitive rental market, Moody is taking a bold step. For the next ten years, she will be offering this apartment as a refuge for victims of family violence, choosing instead to rent a place for herself elsewhere.

In a heartfelt call to action, Moody is encouraging landlords across the nation to consider similar gestures of generosity.

Moody is calling on every landlord in the country to consider doing the same.

“I didn’t want to be a landlord,” Moody said. 

“I didn’t want to Airbnb it. I didn’t want to charge people exorbitant amounts of money to have a roof over their head. I wanted it to be contributing to the solution of violence against women instead of contributing to it.”

A legacy born in violence

Moody has named the apartment Stacey’s Sanctuary, in memory of nine-year-old Stacey-Ann Tracy, who was one of two children murdered by Moody’s stepfather in 1990. 

The timing of the project is poignant; this year marks the 35th anniversary of Stacey’s death. 

Moody vividly recalls the day of the murder when she was just 19 years old. 

She had returned home to see her family and was picked up from the bus stop by her stepfather just hours after he had killed the young girl.

Moody remembers him being strangely “hyped up” and eager to talk about the missing girl he claimed he was going to help search for. 

“When I looked back on it, after I found out about Stacey being killed, all of the pieces fell into place, his behaviour, and the coldness of that,” she said.

Stacey’s Sanctuary is designed to be the exact opposite of that final terror – a place of peace and welcome that tells Stacey’s family her life still matters to the rest of the world.

The five-month renovation, finished this week, was funded entirely by donations and T-shirt sales and was designed with strict “trauma-informed” principles. 

Moody partnered with the charity You Matter to furnish the apartment and make sure it felt like a genuine home.

“I wanted the property to be somewhere that I would live. I don’t think that going into transitional housing means that you have to live in substandard accommodation,” Moody said.

Every detail was intentional, from the secure building access that prevents residents from having to walk on the street to their car to the specific furniture layouts inside.

In the bedroom, the designers chose to include only one bedside table to remove any psychological expectation that the woman living there must re-partner. 

By using calming colours and working with psychologists to reduce environmental triggers, the team aimed to provide a space where a woman could finally feel the “breathing room” necessary to save for permanent housing and recover from the impact of her experiences.

A challenge to landlords and government

Moody is currently finalising a partnership with a leading Aboriginal women’s organisation to manage the property.

The property will remain in the ownership of Moody, it is her retirement nest egg, but she will hand over the keys to it to the organisation for up to a decade. 

It’s a move Moody says other landlords should consider.

“If you’re in a financial position to do this, if you have property, this is actually one way that we as individuals can help a woman leaving violence be safe,” she said.

“I would also say that it’s a really sad reflection on our policy makers and on our governments, on our premiers, on our prime minister, on the people who will hold the country’s purse strings, that this is actually what we have to do. 

“Safe and affordable housing is a right for everyone. Women should not face having to sleep in their car or in caravan parks or couch surf in order to be safe, it’s not good enough.”