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
Mould and real estates & Sydney rental market sinks to new low
Backchat (No paywall)... Next, we're joined by First National Real Estate CEO, Ray Ellis to unpack mould issues in rental properties and the tension between tenants and their real estate when it comes to rectifying issues like this. Finally, you'll hear a chat with Leo Patterson-Ross from the NSW tenants union about the worsening state of Sydney's rental market.
https://fbiradio.com/945fm/programs/backchat/2022-10-08/syd-rent…
# TUNSW in the media, Audio NSW, Rent, Housing market, Mould, Sydney.Unblocking Homes Program
(No paywall)The Unblocking Homes Program is a package of initiatives to help councils unlock the supply of new houses to ensure NSW’s growing population has a safe, secure and affordable place to call home. ... The NSW Government is providing such support to councils through the Unblocking Homes Program, an $11.5 million package for financial year 2022/2023 that contains 7 initiatives to boost resourcing for councils to progress projects stuck in the planning system and clear pathways for housing delivery. (NSW Department of Planning and Environment)
https://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Policy-and-Legislation/Housing/U…
# NSW, Local Government, Planning and development, State Government.Rockhampton's flood prone Depot Hill is attracting homebuyers with affordable prices deemed worth the risk
Rachel McGhee ABC (No paywall)A double-storey home on a large block, with beautiful river views, that's walking distance to the CBD – all for under $300,000. It might seem too good to be true in today's real estate climate. But it's a reality for Tania Wissemann, who bought her Rockhampton home earlier this year for just $289,000. "When I walked in it felt like home and I just had this beautiful view to wake up to." That affordability came with a catch. The home Ms Wissemann bought is in Depot Hill, a suburb notorious for flooding.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-11/buying-house-in-a-flood-z…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market.Council takes on residents over plea to block development of 45-storey towers
Michael Koziol The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Parramatta City Council has rejected the advice of its staff and pleas from residents to block two large residential towers at Wentworth Point, instead inviting the developer to provide further information before a final decision. Wentworth Point developer Billbergia proposed an amendment to local development controls that would allow it to build two new waterfront towers in the “final stage” of the high-density precinct.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/council-takes-on-residents-o…
# NSW, Housing market, Landlords and agents, Local Government, Planning and development.Recent borrowers at risk of becoming ‘mortgage prisoners’
Clancy Yeates The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Recent homebuyers who bought at the peak of the housing market with low deposits could find it harder to switch banks in their hunt for cheaper rates, despite the mortgage refinancing boom under way in the market. With interest rates tipped to climb higher, experts have warned a sizeable group of borrowers will struggle to meet the criteria needed to switch lenders. The main pain point for some mortgage holders, according to brokers and analysts at investment firm Jarden, will be that they will no longer pass lenders’ stress tests for new borrowers. Falling house prices are also expected to push loan-to-valuation ratios (LVR) above the 80 per cent threshold at which new borrowers must often pay for mortgage insurance.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/recent-borro…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing market.No matter how many times you move, you can’t avoid these seven stages
Deirdre Fidge The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)They say moving house is one of life’s most stressful experiences, on par with divorce. I’ve essentially gotten divorced every year for the past decade – without a single wedding. And here I am, again, living among boxes after relocating to Sydney. As I scuttle from room to room like a disoriented crab, cloaked metaphorically in a deja vu of my last move while cloaked literally in an old blanket because I can’t find my dressing gown, I’m reminded that certain aspects of moving are inevitable.
https://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life-and-relationships/no-matte…
# Australia, Home.Couple who found old gold coins under their kitchen floor are $1.3 million richer
Emily Power Domain (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... A couple who found a jar of old gold coins under their kitchen floor are £754,000 ($1.3 million) richer after selling the surprise treasure trove at auction. The home owners in England were laying new flooring, ripping up the existing floorboards and jackhammering through the concrete beneath, when they struck a bounty: 260 ancient coins in a small urn.
https://www.smh.com.au/property/living/couple-who-found-old-gold…
# International, Home.Real estate scam prompts Sunshine Coast single mum's warning
Olivia Mason ABC (No paywall)Nikki Hart had been working towards home ownership for years. After being knocked back from property after property, the single mother-of-one thought she had finally managed to secure her own place. But it was an elaborate scam. Ms Hart said she received an email requesting a 1 per cent deposit to secure a Sunshine Coast property after she had put an offer on it through a real estate website. "It was a $4,000 deposit … if I didn't like the property once I signed the contract or something had fallen through, I would get that refund back," she said. Ms Hart arranged a time to inspect the property with her parents and daughter Poppy and sent the $4,000.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-12/real-estate-scam-leaves-s…
# Australia, Home ownership, Welfare.