Housing News Digest
The Tenants' Union Housing News Digest compiles our pick of items from all the latest tenancy and housing media, sent once per week, on Thursdays.
Below is the Digest archive from November 2020 onwards. From time to time you will find additional items in the archive that did not make it into the weekly Digest email. Earlier archives are here, where you can also find additional digests by other organisations.
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Archive
Australians face record-high rents across all capital cities: Domain report
Yiying Li and David Taylor ABC (No paywall)Australians are paying record-high rents across all the capital cities as low vacancy rates mean tenants are facing "a landlord's market". Data from property website Domain has revealed a renewed acceleration in rental growth across the capitals, led by Sydney's strongest quarterly increase in four years. Combined capital city house rents increased by $20 over the June quarter, taking annual growth to its strongest pace in almost two years, according to Domain's June Quarter 2026 Rent Report.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-07-08/record-high-rents-across-…
# NSW, .New data shows renters feel more secure in their homes thanks to Minns Labor Government’s reforms
NSW Government (No paywall)New insights from the Department of Customer Service have revealed that the state’s renters are feeling empowered, protected and confident in the first year of the Minns Labor Government’s landmark reforms. Over the last 12 months, the Government has made renting fairer by banning no-grounds evictions, limiting rent increases to once per year, ensuring renters have fee-free ways to pay rent, banning illegal fees for background checks, making it easier to have pets in rentals and announcing the launch of Smart Rental Bonds later this year.
https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/renters-feeling-more…
# NSW, Bond, Eviction, Pets.Sydney suburbs set to be hit hardest by rent rises
Aidan Devine realestate.com.au (No paywall)Sydney tenants have been told to brace for another financial squeeze due to the government’s controversial decision to axe negative gearing. Economic modelling from property analytics group FoundIt has forecast rents will rise by up to $34 a week in some Sydney areas over the next three months alone. These rises would occur as new landlords await confirmation of negative gearing restrictions announced in the Budget, currently before parliament, which will restrict negative gearing tax benefits to new builds from mid-2027.
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/sydney-suburbs-set-to-be-hit-…
# NSW, Rent.Parramatta, Central Coast & Penrith to lead Smart Rental Bonds rollout
NSW Government (No paywall)The Minns Labor Government has unveiled that renters in Parramatta, the Central Coast and Penrith will be first to experience Smart Rental Bonds with a phased rollout across NSW starting in August. Smart Rental Bonds will allow the 2.3 million renters across NSW to digitally transfer bonds between properties, eliminating the need to fork out thousands of dollars for another bond. This is expected to save renters up to $4,000 each time they move home. The fast-growing communities in the Paramatta, the Central Coast and Penrith Local Government Areas have some of the state’s highest rates of daily bond lodgement, with Smart Rental Bonds delivering crucial cost-of-living savings to renters in metropolitan and regional NSW.
https://www.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-releases/smart-rental-bonds-r…
# NSW, Bond.NSW to set up modular housing factory to 'turbocharge' delivery of new homes
Sean Tarek Goodwin ABC (No paywall)The New South Wales government is looking to partner with construction companies to create a new modular housing factory to "turbocharge" the delivery of new homes. It is opening a tender process for a Modern Methods of Construction Innovation Facility, where prefabricated housing modules and components could be built faster and more cheaply. The model would involve large sections of rooms being constructed off-site in a dedicated facility before being transported to new developments across the state. "The way we build homes has barely changed for generations," Premier Chris Minns said in a statement.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-21/nsw-modular-homes-plan-to…
# NSW, .Could a Human Rights Act transform renters rights in NSW?
Eloise Parrab Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)In late 2025 Greens MP Jenny Leong introduced a Human Rights Bill into NSW Parliament and over 120 organisations (including the Tenants’ Union) and individuals endorsed an open statement calling on all NSW Parliamentarians to support the establishment of a public enquiry into a Human Rights Act in NSW. This call also reflected the NSW Labor Party's platform at the last election where they committed to conducting a community consultation into legislation to better protect the human rights of residents in NSW.
https://www.tenants.org.au/blog/could-human-rights-act-transform…
# NSW, .‘Affordability crisis’: How the Western housing crisis spiralled
Dwayne Oxford Al Jazeera (No paywall)In 2026, a mounting housing crisis in Western nations has finally forced its way onto the agenda of some of the world’s richest governments. In the UK, a landmark renters’ rights law took effect in England and Wales on May 1, ending “no-fault” evictions in one of the country’s biggest private-rental reforms in decades. Across the Channel, the European Commission and Parliament have launched a new push on housing affordability, while in Washington, the United States Senate has advanced a rare bipartisan bill aimed at loosening barriers to new construction and expanding affordable housing supply.
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/6/26/affordability-crisis…
# International, .Mamdani’s Promised Rent Freeze Approved in New York: What to Know
Chad de Guzman Time (No paywall)Freeze the rent” became the definitive rallying cry of Zohran Mamdani’s affordability-focused mayoral campaign for New York City, one of the most expensive cities in the world. Despite skepticism that he could actually pull it off, a board he controls made good on his pledge on Thursday, just six months into his term. The city’s Rent Guidelines Board, in a 7-1 vote, approved a rent freeze covering both one-year and two-year leases for people living in about 1 million rent-stabilized apartments, which make up about 27% of the overall housing stock across New York City’s five boroughs.
https://time.com/article/2026/06/26/new-york-rent-freeze-stabili…
# Must read, Hot topic International, Rent.