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
Almost 40 per cent of residents in aged care facilities have been abused, data released by royal commission shows
Mary Lloyd ABC (No paywall)Research into Australian aged care facilities shows 39.2 per cent of residents have experienced some form of abuse. The data released by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety was calculated using responses to a survey of 391 aged care residents in 67 homes.’ Read her article entitled: ‘Almost 40 per cent of residents in aged care facilities have been abused, data released by royal commission shows.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12-22/royal-commission-estimate…
# Australia, Older people.Assemble fast tracking growth of its team with plans for more rent/buy and now build-to-rent’
Poppy Johnston The Fifth Estate (No paywall)AustralianSuper’s 25 per cent share in Assemble Communities has buoyed the innovative Melbourne-based developer that offers renters the option to buy after five years in some developments. … The model also seeks to rectify some of the community-eroding effects of the rental market through longer leases and other strategies to lengthen stays. Rather than moving every few years as year-long leases end, people will likely stay long enough to get to know their neighbours.
https://www.thefifthestate.com.au/innovation/residential-2/assem…
# Australia, Rent, Housing market.Sydney councils in fast-growing areas could gain power to lift rates
Megan Gorrey The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Councils in fast-growing parts of Sydney would be given greater powers to increase rates to help meet the needs of their surging populations under a proposal by the Berejiklian government.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/sydney-councils-in-fast-grow…
# NSW, Local Government, Tax.Ratepayers dudded $4 million as council “forgets” to bill developers
Carrie Fellner The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Four million dollars that was meant to have been paid by developers for the community’s benefit has been discovered missing from the coffers of a Sydney council after a secretive internal investigation.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/ratepayers-dudded-4-million-…
# NSW, Local Government, Tax.Sydney rental properties discounted in every region, days on market increases
Tawar Razaghi Domain (Paywall)The amount of time Sydney homes are sitting advertised for rent has stretched out to 50 days, despite the fact nearly a third of rentals across the city have slashed their asking price.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/the-pockets-of-sydney-where-more-…
# NSW, Rent, Housing market.Property site listings exclude renters on benefits
Maryam Ahmed and Alison Benjamin BBC (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... The majority of adverts on SpareRoom and OpenRent say people on benefits will not be considered as tenants. … [Yet] in July, a judge ruled that blanket bans on renting properties to benefits claimants are unlawful and discriminatory, breaking the 2010 Equality Act on grounds of sex and disability.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-55331081?__twitter_impression=…
# Legal significance International, Discrimination, Rent, Short-term holiday letting.Why we need a betterment levy in NSW: better late than never
Patrick Fensham and Tim Sneesby The Fifth Estate (No paywall)The NSW Productivity Commission in November released its final report on the Review of Infrastructure Contributions in NSW (PC Review). It controversially ruled out capturing a share of windfall gains made from rezonings or the granting of additional development, even though this is widely used in voluntary planning agreements (VPAs) and state infrastructure contributions (SIC).
https://www.thefifthestate.com.au/urbanism/planning/why-we-need-…
# Australia, Housing market, Tax.Hobart Council wants to stop Airbnbs popping up but some owners want the right to choose
Katri Uibu ABC (No paywall)Louise Elliot and her husband have three houses — one of which is listed on short-stay accommodation site Airbnb. And despite going for around $800 a night in high season, it has a "high occupancy rate".
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12-18/plans-to-cap-airbnbs-to-c…
# Australia, Housing market, Short-term holiday letting.