Housing News Digest
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
EU to regulate short-term rentals in plan to tackle affordable homes shortage
Jennifer Rankin The Guardian (No paywall)The European Commission has announced it will regulate short-term rentals and seek to curb speculation in the housing market, under the EU’s first-ever plan to tackle a shortage of affordable homes. Housing is largely a matter for local and national authorities, but the issue has climbed up the EU agenda, as soaring rents and housing costs have priced out young people, key workers and families from many European cities. Dan Jørgensen, the EU’s first commissioner for housing, said European democracy was at stake: “If we don’t solve this issue, we risk leaving a void that extremist political forces will take.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/16/eu-to-regulate-sho…
# Hot topic International, .The slow death of social housing – and its original purpose
The Guardian (No paywall)Your editorial (The Guardian view on England’s social housing system: failing the very people it was built for, 10 December) claims that “social homes were supposed to be for those who couldn’t afford private rents”. That’s not so. Most council estates, such as Becontree and Harold Hill, were built following the first and second world wars to house ordinary working families when decent housing was in dire straits. Privately rented properties were often of poor quality and devoid of basic amenities.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/dec/15/the-slow-death-o…
# International, Public and community housing.Landlord faces nightmare clean as £40k rent unpaid
BBC (No paywall)A landlord owed over £40,000 in unpaid rent from a tenant who left piles of rubbish all over her property says the experience has been a "nightmare". Single mother-of-two Nevena Khediri decided to rent out her family home in Camberley after her marriage broke down. The tenant who the BBC is not naming, eventually left the property in an "indescribable" state, Ms Khediri said. "The drawers of the kitchen can actually be pulled out so more stuff can be piled on top. There's bread, and some sort of rotting cheese. The fridge has cobwebs."
# Video International, Rent, Repairs.Ministers ‘break word’ on protecting nature after weakening biodiversity planning rule
Helena Horton and Kiran Stacey The Guardian (No paywall)The government has broken its promise to protect nature by weakening planning rules for housing developers, groups have said. While developers once had to create “biodiversity net gain” (BNG), meaning creating 10% more space for nature on site than there was before the building took place, the housing minister Matthew Pennycook announced exemptions to this rule on Tuesday. Under the new rules developments under 0.2 hectares are exempted from the policy. Analysis from the Wildlife Trusts has found that this means a combined area across England the size of Windsor forest will now not be restored for nature.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/dec/16/ministers-weake…
# International, .Sydney loses half its Airbnbs as listings surge drives up regional rents
Lydia Kellner realestate.com.au (No paywall)Sydney’s Airbnb market is in freefall, with a dramatic exodus of short-term rental properties reshaping the city’s accommodation landscape. But while this might signal a glimmer of hope for long-term renters in the harbour city, it’s simultaneously fuelling a housing catastrophe in regional Australia, where a relentless “holiday gold rush” by investors is pushing local communities to breaking point. According to a report by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Sydney has witnessed a staggering 48.3 per cent drop in Airbnb listings since 2019. Melbourne isn’t far behind, experiencing a significant 23.8 per cent decline.
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/sydney-loses-half-its-airbnbs…
# NSW, .Bulldozing affordable Sydney flats for luxury builds makes people ‘extremely cynical’ about development, Spender warns
Anne Davies The Guardian (No paywall)The trend of knocking down older blocks of flats to replace them with a smaller number of luxury apartments in parts of Sydney could see community support for development dive, federal independent MP Allegra Spender has warned. Spender, whose Wentworth electorate takes in Bondi, Potts Point and Paddington, has written to the New South Wales housing minister, Rose Jackson, calling for urgent action. She is meeting with councils too, urging them to adopt policies similar to the City of Sydney, which does not allow developments that lead to a significant loss of dwellings.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/11/bulldozin…
# NSW, .Video cover letters coming for renters as hundreds of Aussies jump on divisive feature: ‘Win for landlords’
Tamika Seeto Yahoo News (No paywall)Rental application platforms have started rolling out video cover letters for prospective tenants. Renters already have to hand over swathes of information when applying for a home, but property managers believe this divisive extra step could help renters and landlords alike. Tenant Options, which is used by more than 100 agencies, launched video cover letters last week. Those applying for properties now have the option to record a 60-second video within the platform to accompany their application, which is then viewed by the property manager.
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/video-cover-letters-coming-for…
# NSW, Rent, Starting a tenancy.Overcrowding, structural issues: suburbs with worst housing exposed
Aidan Devine news.com.au (No paywall)Pockets of Sydney and Melbourne have been revealed to have the worst housing in the country, with thousands of properties plagued by defects, overcrowding and structural problems. Many of the areas flagged as having the worst property issues in a sweeping national study of housing conditions were home to a large concentration of high-density apartments or recently constructed medium density. The research from iSelect analysed SA4 regions across 21 factors, including housing conditions, climate, population health, and access to healthcare.
https://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/sydney-nsw/overcrowd…
# NSW, Rent, Repairs.