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
‘F**khead territory’: ABC star explodes after being trolled over rental question
news.com.au news.com.au (No paywall)Mark Humphries’ Twitter feed has turned into “f**khead territory”.
On Sunday evening, the ABC satirist took to the platform to share his thoughts on what seemed a reasonable observation of life in the rental market.
“Sick of the NBN’s $300 “one-time connection fee”. Am now in the second-straight rental property where the owner refuses to pay it,” he wrote.
https://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/renting/fkhead-terri…
# TUNSW in the media Australia, Utilities water energy internet, Landlords and agents.The boom is back in the Pilbara – and so is the housing crisis
Jonathan Barrett The Guardian (No paywall)In Western Australia’s iron-tinged towns, the familiar signs of a boom are back.
It’s easy to secure a job in the tight labour market, but getting one that can cover the soaring cost of a rental is another story.
“It’s unaffordable for the average income earner and completely off the table for people reliant on support payments,” says Danielle Black, a senior case worker for the Salvation Army stationed in Karratha, a Pilbara city tapped into the mining and oil and gas industries.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jan/24/the-boom-…
# Must read Australia, Public and community housing, Homelessness, Housing affordability.Hobart Showground refuge for rental crisis homeless is set to close
Will Murray ABC (No paywall)For over a year now, Tereasa Clements has been living in a caravan at the Hobart Showground.
"I got made redundant in Launceston and moved down here with my partner," she said.
"I was going to get a house, but the price of housing to rent is impossible. So, I'm here, and we're in the van."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-11/hobart-showground-refuge-…
# Australia, Homelessness, State Government.IMF on Australia's housing market
RN Breakfast ABC (No paywall)The International Monetary Fund is forecasting hard times ahead for the global economy.
We're just four days into 2023, but the IMF is predicting this year will be quote "tougher than the year we've [left] behind".
A new report from the IMF reveals Australia's property prices rank among the most "misaligned" in the world.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/imf-on-a…
# Audio Australia, Housing market.Aussie renter ‘too scared’ to tell real estate agent about ‘disgusting’ bathroom find - here’s why
Amy Sinclair 7 News (No paywall)An Aussie renter has spoken of her dilemma after making a “disgusting” discovery in her bathroom just days after moving in.
Sharing on a popular Facebook group, the tenant revealed how she was investigating the source of an unsightly smell in her ensuite when she stumbled across the hidden find.
After working out that the stench was coming from the drain in the floor, she lifted the grate to discover a stash of old cigarette butts and ash blocking the pipe.
https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/aussie-renter-too-scared-to-tell-…
# Australia, Eviction, Repairs, Affordable housing, Housing affordability.Reflections on Vienna’s Social Housing Model From Tenant Advocates
Oksana Mironova The Nation (No paywall)Rents are reaching unimaginable heights and homeownership is increasingly out of reach for many people in the United States. As housing organizers, legislators, and everyday people debate paths forward, there is growing interest in a radical transformation of the housing market through the expansion of social housing. While this is a relatively new term in the US, it is common parlance in other parts of the world that have a stronger social safety net and a tenant organizing history.
Social housing policies create “housing in the public interest,” defining it as public good, rather than a financial asset. Generally, social housing models strive toward decommodification, social equity, and resident control. By creating less speculative housing markets, these policies reduce the opportunities for exploitation, negligence, and risky behavior by landlords.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/reflections-vienna-soc…
# Must read International, Public and community housing, Campaigns and law reform.Promises and pitfalls: What to expect as a renter in 2023
Shanti Mathias The Spinoff (No paywall)With a general election on the horizon, various pieces of legislation coming (or not coming) into force and bad economic vibes all around us, we asked Éimhín O’Shea, a national organiser at Renters United, what renters can expect this year.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/19-01-2023/promises-and-pitfall…
# International, Eviction, Repairs, Campaigns and law reform, Housing affordability, Landlords and agents.Bristol Council to ask government for powers to bring in rent controls as costs spiral
Sara Keenan The Big Issue (UK) (No paywall)A council in England is demanding the government grants it powers to bring in rent controls as the housing crisis spirals out of control.
Private tenants are currently facing the highest rise in rent since records began seven years ago, according to the ONS figures. A quarter of tenants surveyed in December said their rent had risen in the past six months, with the UK average now £991 a month. The average tenant is paying 24 per cent of their weekly expenditure on housing compared to 16 per cent for those with a mortgage, the ONS found.
https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/bristol-council-rent-contr…
# Legal significance International, Rent, Campaigns and law reform, Housing affordability, Human rights.