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
‘Non-profit status’ promises new hope for German affordable housing
Charles Kingston Refire (No paywall)The German federal government has made a significant move by reviving the instrument of non-profit housing, a scheme that was buried 24 years ago. This decision, part of the Annual Tax Act passed by the Federal Cabinet last week, aims to address the chronic shortage of affordable housing in Germany. The reintroduction of non-profit housing, also known as “residential non-profit status,” or Wohngemeinnützigkeit, promises to offer substantial benefits to investors, housing companies, and tenants alike. REFIRE has featured a number of articles in recent months showcasing opportunities for investors to gain access to qualifying schemes, and we're keeping a close eye on developments in the sector.
https://www.refire-online.com/api/amp/markets/non-profit-status-…
# Hot topic International, Rent.Corporate landlords' actions affect tenants' health, report says
Albinson Linares NBC News (USA) (No paywall)Miriam de Santiago says she worries about the rent on her home every day, doing the math to make sure she can meet her obligations without compromising the health of her son, who has epilepsy. “Epilepsy medication costs between $780 and $1,000 [a month], and we have to have it at home and at school. With the rent increases, I have to decide which medicine to request first, see which one is more urgent and find a balance,” De Santiago said in an interview. Her family has lived with her two teenage children in the Boulder Meadows Mobile Home Park community in Boulder, Colorado, for 16 years.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/corporate-landlords-affect-t…
# Must read International, Rent.Hong Kong leader John Lee tells young people not to ‘deliberately’ depress income to be eligible for public housing
James Lee Hong Kong Free Press (No paywall)Hong Kong’s leader has called on young people not to waste “potential and opportunities” by “deliberately” depressing their income below the limit allowed to apply for public housing. Speaking to reporters ahead of his weekly Executive Council meeting on Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee said he had heard of some people ensuring that their earnings remained below the monthly income limit in an effort to be allocated a government-subsidised unit. According to the Housing Authority, the income limit for single applicants is HK$12,940 per month, or HK$19,730 for a two-person family. The average waiting time for public housing was 5.7 years, as of March.
https://hongkongfp.com/2024/07/16/hong-kong-leader-john-lee-tell…
# Hot topic International, Public and community housing, Rent.Tenant awarded over $2,000 after landlord tried to end tenancy in retaliation
New Zealand Tenancy Services (No paywall)Aotearoa: The tenant received the email after the landlord was issued an Improvement Notice to resolve a complaint made by the tenant about the rental property. In his decision, the Tenancy Tribunal adjudicator, Rex Woodhouse stated that “there are strong interests for tenants and the public generally, that when termination notices are given, they are only given lawfully. Ending a person’s tenancy is a very significant step to take.”
https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/about-tenancy-services/news/tenant-a…
# Hot topic International, Rent, Tribunal NCAT.Rising rents lead to spike in evictions in Arizona's Maricopa County
CBS News (No paywall)Since March 2023, Maricopa County, Arizona, has led the nation in eviction filings, with one Phoenix judge hearing as many as 500 eviction cases a month. It's part of an affordable housing crisis attributed to rising rents. According to the website Zillow, rents have jumped more than 30% from pre-pandemic prices.
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/rising-rents-lead-to-spike-in-evic…
# Video International, Eviction, Rent.Adelaide mother and disabled son awaiting public housing told to 'manifest a home' or consider living in tent
Bethanie Alderson ABC (No paywall)An Adelaide mother who has two months to find somewhere to live with her severely disabled son says she was told to "manifest a house" or consider living in a tent by a SA Housing Trust public servant. Katie Fattel told ABC Radio Adelaide her four-year-old son Cassian acquired a severe brain injury at 18 months old, leaving him with "the most severe" form of cerebral palsy. She says he is non-verbal and non-mobile, and relies on multiple machines to keep him alive. "He's on the feeding pump for 22 hours a day ... his suction machine has actually saved his life on several occasions," Ms Fattel told ABC Radio
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-12/mother-and-disabled-son-f…
# Must read Australia, Discrimination, Rent.The Great Crumbling Australian Dream: By the river
Abigail Varney and Nelli Saarinen ABC (No paywall)It might seem like a rough way to live, but for Chloe and Trent, it’s the most stability they’ve had in a long time. “It’s our healing chapter,” Chloe says. “Our whole lives, both of us have been through hell and back pretty much, both in our own ways,” she says. “And now it’s just really recovering so we can have a good rest of our life and just be happy. We’re going to take it easy and get our mental health better.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-11/young-homeless-people-tas…
# Hot topic Australia, Rent.Report reveals 100,000 Melbourne homes were vacant in 2023
Gareth Hutchens ABC (No paywall)There were almost 100,000 homes sitting vacant or under-used in Melbourne in 2023, a new report has revealed. Prosper Australia's Speculative Vacancy report, which examines water meter usage data, reveals 27,400 homes, or 1.5 per cent of all dwellings in Melbourne, were left entirely empty in 2023. With the inclusion of homes that recorded less than a quarter of the average single-person consumption of water over the year, another 70,400 homes were significantly under-used last year, lifting the total to almost 100,000 homes, or one in 20 dwellings across the city, sitting vacant.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-07-13/report-reveals-100000-mel…
# Must read Australia, Rent.