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
NSW budget boost to help children and women escape violence
Alexandra Smith The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Frontline services helping women and children experiencing domestic and sexual violence will be given an extra $60 million as the NSW government tries to tackle cycles of abuse in families.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/nsw-budget-boost-to-help-chi…
# NSW, Domestic violence, Health, State Government.Landlord association calls for £200m fund to help tenants in arrears
Peter Apps Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... The chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association has called on the government to consider providing up to £200m to help people avoid being evicted for falling into rent arrears. Speaking in a one-off session of the Work and Pensions Committee on Wednesday, Ben Beadle said: "Research shows 82% of renters are in arrears who were not in arrears before the pandemic. Many of these [people] are ineligible for housing allowance or discretionary payments. There is nothing really there [in funding terms] for people who haven’t been in arrears before but need a short, sharp injection of funds to help them sustain their tenancy, which is in the interests of everyone frankly.”
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/landlord-association-c…
# International, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.You want workers? Fix the housing crisis
Nicola Abbott (No paywall)From New Zealand ... Wanaka businesses are screaming for staff, but there's just nowhere for us to live. I myself am a local resident of Wanaka and, being a part of the younger community, the probability and chances of us and others like us surviving in a town with little to no accommodation is considerably reducing our chances to keep our jobs, let alone simply heading home after the work is done. ... These jobs cannot perform on their own, but we are being pushed out by homes sitting vacant for months, listed on Airbnb for extortionate rates and hundreds applying for a single home listing where families are prioritised. (Stuff)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/125418548/you-…
# International, Rent, Housing market, Short-term holiday letting, Young people.‘With COVID we have a plan’: Housing back at top of Sydney’s worry list
Matt Wade and Sean Naden The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Housing costs have drawn level with health as the biggest worry for people in NSW as soaring property prices stoke fears about affordability. The Ipsos Issues Monitor, which asks a representative sample of NSW adults to identify the three most important issues facing the state, shows housing now ranks the equal top concern alongside health.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/with-covid-we-have-a…
# NSW, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing affordability, Housing market.Australian apartment pipeline set to fall, raising worries about rental shortage when borders open: Knight Frank
Elizabeth Redman Domain (No paywall)The number of new apartments being built is set to plunge, new research finds, raising the prospect of rental shortages in future years once international immigration to Australia resumes.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/australian-apartment-pipeline-set…
# Australia, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.RBA lets it rip: are Australia’s home loan rates finally going to rise?
Michael West (No paywall)Two big things are happening in the bond market. One, the government is actually borrowing at a profit. Two, there appears to be a quiet plan by the RBA to let bond rates rise and take the heat out of housing. (Michael West Media)
https://www.michaelwest.com.au/rba-lets-it-rip-are-australias-ho…
# Australia, Housing market.Tiny houses are one way young people can afford real estate, but experts say scrapping stamp duty would help more
Stephanie Chalmers ABC (No paywall)Jonty Dalton and Lucy Smith are about to achieve the Australian home ownership dream, but on a smaller scale. Rather than wait for house prices to go down or new government support to be announced, the Hobart couple have found a different solution: a tiny house. ... Housing affordability, which has been a long-running issue … is again back as a really serious problem that young people face," Curtin University professor Rachel Ong ViforJ said. ... The deposit schemes and stamp duty concessions may make it easier for some would-be buyers to save the required amount to enter the market. However, they also add to the demand for housing and therefore contribute to higher prices, as more people try to jump into the market sooner. Professor Ong ViforJ says additional reform is needed, to reduce tax incentives for housing investors. "Many of them already own a family home, but they're seeking that attractive investment by purchasing the second or the third property," she said. That's not politically popular, however. "They're painful solutions … we do need political leadership and willingness amongst our policymakers to execute them," Professor Ong ViforJ said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-15/experts-say-govt-housing-…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market, Tax.Social housing advocates label Queensland's 2021 budget spending a 'band aid' that won't solve crisis
Rachel Riga and Emilie Gramenz ABC (No paywall)The Queensland government's multi-billion-dollar state budget spend on housing and health has been met been with mixed reactions, as stakeholders say more is needed to properly address issues.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-16/queensland-budget-2021-at…
# Australia, Public and community housing, State Government.