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
Wait list grows for social housing in NSW
Duncan Murray, AAP The West (No paywall)The waiting list of people needing social housing in NSW has increased for the first time since 2016, with about 1000 more people in line for a home.
As of June 2022, there were 51,031 approved for social housing and waiting for a property to become available, compared to 49,928 the year before.
The number has steadily decreased since 2016 when the figure hit 59,907. Before this it had varied between about 55,000 and 60,000 since 2012.
https://thewest.com.au/politics/wait-list-grows-for-social-housi…
# Research alert NSW, Public and community housing, Housing affordability, Housing market, State Government.Most Airbnb-style short rentals in Tasmania used to be long-term leases, study finds
Luke Henriques-Gomes The Guardian (No paywall)Research commissioned by Shelter Tasmania says increase in short-stay properties had impact on availability of rental houses for local people.
A large proportion of short-stay properties in Tasmania’s two biggest cities were previously available as long-term rentals, new research suggests.
The analysis from a top housing academic is part of a three-year project looking at the effect of the short-stay industry on the rental market in Tasmania, which is in the grips of a housing crisis.
The study by Peter Phibbs, an emeritus professor at UNSW, cross-referenced properties in Launceston and Hobart named on the state government’s short-term rentals list against information held by a CoreLogic-associated real estate database.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/dec/29/most-airb…
# Australia, Eviction, Housing affordability, Housing market, Short-term holiday letting.Not cool: push for insulation in all Australian rental homes as study shows dangerous heat levels
Cait Kelly The Guardian (No paywall)People in social housing often face hottest conditions and struggle to pay for air conditioning, advocates say.
Advocates are calling for insulation to be regulated in all Australian rental properties as research shows some people swelter through temperatures above 30C in their homes for extended periods in summer.
Many of the hottest homes are those of people living in social housing, with some residents forced to go into debt to buy air conditioners, or hose down their houses to stay cool.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jan/16/not-cool-…
# Must read, TUNSW in the media Australia, Public and community housing, Climate change, Health, Housing affordability, Landlords and agents, Minimum habitability standards.The rent crisis is set to spread: here’s the case for doubling rent assistance
Bruce Bradbury The Conversation (No paywall)For many Australians, the rent crisis is just starting. Advertised rents have been soaring, but mainly for new rentals – so called “asking rents”.
The broadest measure of rents actually paid – the rents on the 480,000 or so capital city properties the Bureau of Statistics uses to calculate the consumer price index – has climbed only modestly, increasing 3.5% in the year to October.
Rent cuts during the first year of COVID mean the Bureau’s measure of capital city rents is just 2.2% above where it was in February 2020, ahead of the COVID lockdowns.
https://theconversation.com/the-rent-crisis-is-set-to-spread-her…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Welfare.Poverty in Australia
Priya Kunjan 3CR (No paywall)This episode features a discussion with anti-poverty advocates Aeryn Brown, Melissa Fisher and Mel, all of whom have experienced navigating Australia's circuitous social security system. Aeryn, Melissa and Mel speak about the realities of living below the poverty line and the importance of centring lived expertise in reforming the delivery of social security.
https://www.3cr.org.au/womenontheline/episode/poverty-australia
# Must read, Audio Australia, Health, Housing affordability, Human rights, Personal stories, Welfare, Work, employment.How housing made rich Australians 50% richer, leaving renters and the young behind – and how to fix it
Brendan Coates, Joey Moloney The Conversation (No paywall)Compared to the rest of the world, income inequality is not particularly high in Australia, nor is it getting much worse – until you include housing.
Rising housing costs have dramatically widened the gap between what Australians on high and low incomes can afford. Rising home prices paired with plummeting rates of homeownership are driving up wealth inequalities.
If we want to address inequality, we will have to fix housing.
https://theconversation.com/how-housing-made-rich-australians-50…
# Australia, Affordable housing, Housing affordability, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Calls to retain scheme helping Australian renters amid affordability crisis
Biwa Kwan, Sam Dover SBS (No paywall)This year, 6,619 rental properties will lose their affordable rental status, under the phasing out of a national scheme providing government subsidies to facilitate housing for lower income households.
Advocates are urging the federal government to continue a national scheme that allows lower-income households to rent properties at least 20 per cent below market rates.
The National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) was rolled out in 2008 by Kevin Rudd's government and comes to an end in 2026, with more houses exiting the program each year.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/calls-to-retain-scheme-helpi…
# Australia, Affordable housing, Federal Government, Homelessness, Housing affordability.In Australia’s severe rental crisis, asylum seekers are increasingly desperate for a place to live
Stephanie Convery The Guardian (No paywall)Each week about 150 people are coming to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in housing distress, but only 40 can be accommodated.
Asylum seekers in Australia are increasingly at risk of homelessness as the rental crisis continues to bite, with more than 70% of people who turn up to a leading asylum seeker support charity in housing distress unable to be placed in accommodation.
The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) has shifted resources since the pandemic to provide emergency accommodation for asylum seekers who are sleeping rough or at immediate risk of homelessness.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jan/14/in-austra…
# Must read Australia, Homelessness, Housing affordability, Human rights.