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
The Sydney suburbs where you should be renegotiating rent
Aidan Devine (Paywall)Tenants are being urged to renegotiate their rent as international border closures during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to put downward pressure on the rental market. Advertised apartment rents in Sydney have dropped by nearly 10 per cent over the past year, while house rents dropped by an average of 6.4 per cent, data from SQM Research revealed. (realestate.com.au)
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/the-sydney-suburbs-where-you-…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.A Tiny Public Housing Authority Offered Residents the Vaccine. Could Others Follow Suit?
Jared Brey (No paywall)From the United States ... Central Falls became the first city in Rhode Island to offer the [Covid-19] vaccine publicly, and the Central Falls Housing Authority was the first organization to administer it. On the last Wednesday of the year, the housing authority offered the vaccine exclusively to its own residents and staff, and to people with housing choice vouchers. Read on ... (Next City)
https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/a-tiny-public-housing-authority…
# Hot topic International, Public and community housing, Coronavirus COVID-19.LGBTQ+ Canadian baby boomers in need of safer housing in senior years
Jacqueline Gahagan and Ren Thomas The Conversation (No paywall)From Canada ... Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the importance of having safe and adequate housing. ... Yet when it comes to vulnerable older Canadians, there are a number of alarming policy gaps in existing efforts to address their unique housing needs and concerns. Canada’s first National Housing Strategy, released in 2017, promises to address disparities in housing, particularly in relation to housing affordability and homelessness. ... However, the strategy lacks a direct focus where we have yet to see improvements for many vulnerable Canadians, specifically older LGBTQ+ populations.
https://theconversation.com/lgbtq-canadian-baby-boomers-in-need-…
# International, Discrimination, Housing market, Human rights, LGBTIQ+, Older people.Sydney unit rents fall to lowest since 2013: Domain Rent Report
Kate Burke Domain (Paywall)Sydney unit rents have recorded their steepest drop in more than 15 years, new data shows, giving tenants in some pockets the chance to negotiate hundreds of dollars off asking prices. ... [Nevertheless] with further cuts made to JobSeeker and JobKeeper in January, and further support payment cuts to come in March, [Better Renting executive director] Mr Dignam said there would be many renters who would struggle to make ends meet.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/sydney-unit-rents-fall-to-lowest-…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Federal Government.Plans for towers above station on Sydney's north shore approved
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Plans for high-rise buildings above a new train station at Crows Nest on Sydney's lower north shore have been given the green light, despite community opposition to the scale of development. ... The rationale for developments such as Crows Nest is that offices, shops and apartments help to cross subsidise the cost of the train station below, which can cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/plans-for-towers-above-stati…
# NSW, Planning and development.Scottish government extends eviction ban until end of March
Lucie Heath Inside Housing (Paywall)Evictions will not be enforced in Scotland until the end of March, with the Scottish government deciding to extend a ban in response to a surge in COVID-19 cases. ... The Scottish government first introduced a ban on eviction notices being enforced on 11 December as part of a Christmas truce, but the rules were initially due to end on 22 January. Going forward the ban will apply to all evictions in areas subject to Tier 3 or 4 restrictions, except those involving criminal or serious anti-social behaviour, such as domestic abuse.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/scottish-government-ex…
# Hot topic International, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19.Legal topics for older people Diary 2021
(No paywall)The Legal Topics for Older People Diary 2021 provides information about seniors rights, consumer law, aged care, community phone numbers and a list of agencies and services for older people. Check out September where theme is 'Your home: owning, renting and neighbours'. Pre-orders open on 11 January 2021. Go to: [https://www.legalaid.nsw.gov.au/publications/order-a-publication] View an electronic copy of the diary here.
https://publications.legalaid.nsw.gov.au/PublicationsResourcesSe…
# NSW, Older people.In the first lockdown, England proved it could end homelessness. Why not now?
Francisco Garcia The Guardian (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... A few months had passed since the implementation in March of 'Everyone In', the scheme to temporarily house rough sleepers in self-contained accommodation during the first wave of the pandemic, including in newly deserted hotels and hostels. The homelessness charity Crisis called it extraordinary, while others lined up to congratulate the government on its unusually bold course of action to shelter thousands of society’s most vulnerable people. An article in the Lancet estimated that the measures prevented more than 21,000 infections and 266 deaths. Simply put, Everyone In saved lives. But the scheme didn’t even last the year. [Read on ...]
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/10/first-lock…
# Must read International, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.