Alarming research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) shows that 54 per cent of young people leaving out-of-home care (OOHC) services will be homeless within four years.

Yfoundations, the peak agency for homeless youth in NSW, believes the answer to the rental market for these young people is simply 'nothing'.

Yfoundations CEO Trish Connolly says young people leaving home care at 21 ...... Unless they have a job with a six-figure income, they can't afford rents in the private rental market.

I've heard of young people leaving group homes because rents have gone up too high. The greed of landlords is outrageous and there is no cap on rents.

"We can't even talk about young people in the home care and rental market."

She paints a moving picture that reveals the harsh realities faced by many young people coming out of the system.

Imagine a long queue at the weekend clamouring for that elusive private rented property that may be in your price range, which you have absolutely no chance of getting because you're on Youth Allowance or Minimum Wage and everyone around you has a stable, well-paid job.

Imagine again that you are homeless and have nowhere to sleep tonight because there are no beds for you in the crisis shelters.

Imagine again that Frontline Homeless Youth Services can only offer you a tent or sleeping bag to sleep in front of their services because it might be safer than sleeping in a park. Or imagine you could couch surf tonight, but you have to have sex in return?

Imagine again that social housing is absolutely impossible to provide for you in the long run because young people are rarely prioritised. That's what a severe housing shortage is doing to young people - not just in NSW, but now everywhere in Australia.

"We rely on the private rental market to support these young people", says Jarrod Wheatley, founder of Professional Individualised Care (PIC).

We need landlords to give people a chance, he says.

PIC is an alternative service to OOHC, designed to facilitate stable relationships for young people who are unable to live at home.

Mr Wheatley's service uses professionals as carers who can build strong bonds and "real relationships" with young people, which continue long after the young person has left the service.

He says: What keeps children safe is a stable adult relationship. I can find specialists, but we can't do it alone. We rely on the private rental market for support. Landlords also have an important role to play. Providing a way out for others is vital for the rest of their lives.

"What would happen if we didn't intervene? Making them outright homeless is not the way to go. It requires a collective response."

Mr Wheatley said that while landlords might not see young people leaving OOHC as a "desirable" option, it could be life-changing for one person.

It would be a huge contribution to society, he said. It's an asset that can change a person's life. It's about building a holistic lifestyle. If we get this right, we will benefit greatly. Landlords can talk to their managing agents about these programmes.

Ms Connolly said there was a "disturbing link" between OOHC leavers and homelessness.

We have data on rough sleepers and a significant proportion of that comes from OOHC, she said.

She said better services were needed to help these young people as they had been in the "worst situations" in their lives and had often suffered severe trauma.

You need to give them Rolls Royce care that continues when they leave, she said.

The Youth Foundation recently launched a petition calling on the Australian Government to develop an independent national homelessness and housing strategy for children and young people.

She said the government needed to set aside more affordable and social housing to help young people transitioning out of homeless shelters.

We need to provide more housing for them so they can have a few years respite to find work and get on their feet, she said.