Her husband and the new Labor minister for the homeless own three properties in three different states.
Julie Collins, 50, was appointed to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s new Cabinet as the minister of housing and homelessness last month.
In her Franklin seat, the mother of three has a family home in Hobart’s upscale Rose Bay suburb, which overlooks the Tasman Bridge.
She also maintains a second property in the affluent Griffith neighborhood of Canberra, which she uses as a base for parliamentary business when in Canberra.
However, in the name of her husband, Ian Hubbard, with whom she has three children, the family owns a third investment property in Queensland.
Beautiful polished floorboards and a two-tier backyard on 700sqm of green property characterize this three-bedroom standalone villa in Toowoomba’s Darling Heights.
The house was bought for $127,000 in 1992 and is expected to have quadrupled in value in the last 30 years.
Based on nearby houses, experts estimate it is currently worth roughly $500,000.
The property is rented by the couple, and it was recently offered for $320 a week as a ‘family home nestled in quiet cul-de-sac.’
‘Good size family brick home in quiet cul-de-sac, offering large living spaces,’ the rental ad read.
‘Fully fenced yard with large paved outdoor area and single lock up garage with backyard access and additional garden shed for storage.
‘Conveniently located in walking distance to schools, shops and universities.’
Ms Collins’ three properties are all listed in her official register of MPs’ interests, with the Queensland property being listed under her spouse’s entry.
Ms Collins has been the Member of Parliament for Franklin since 2007, but she, like Mr Albanese, grew up in a housing commission home.
Her father died when she was five months old, leaving her mother, who was only 19, widowed and living with her grandparents in public housing.
She was hired as a Labor administrative assistant despite not being able to finish her education due to financial constraints.
Ms Collins, a member of the Australian Republican Movement, worked for a number of Tasmanian Labor MPs and senators before becoming Young Labor’s state president in 1996.
In 2010, she was appointed Community Services Minister by then-Prime Minister Julia Gillard, and in 2013, she was given a larger role in Kevin Rudd’s short-lived second Cabinet.
Ms Collins’ spokesman stressed that the Queensland property was her husband’s investment property and that she did not own it directly.