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
In Barcelona, rent control shows promise - but short term rentals limit progress
Olivia Haber Greenwood Shelter Force (No paywall)One year ago, Catalunya became the first and only region in Spain to respond to its rental crisis with rent control measures. Since then, average rents in the region have dropped slightly. But listings on popular online rental platforms have soared in cost, and short-term leases—a way for landlords to get around the law—have spiked. Under the law, new rents in high-cost areas must remain under an official price index when the property owner is a large landholder, and landlords can’t raise rents between tenants.
https://shelterforce.org/2025/04/03/in-barcelona-rent-control-sh…
# International, Rent.The huge shift between landlords and renters as rentals stay vacant in Wellington
Mary Argue Radio NZ (No paywall)A glut of vacant rentals in the capital city has shifted the dynamic between landlords and renters, with some tenants knocking close to $100 off their weekly rent. Landlords are offering all kinds of incentives to entice people to viewings, and those who are looking for a home have found they've got their pick of the bunch. Property experts say it's a stark contrast to a couple of years ago, when the market was a "little bit crazy the other way," with rents rising every year.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/574172/the-huge-shift-betwee…
# International, .The challenges facing New Zealand’s biggest landlord
Madeleine Chapman The Spinoff ()Social housing in New Zealand is in a state of flux as Kāinga Ora halts building projects and councils ponder the feasibility of being landlords for the most vulnerable. On the eve of Matariki in June, Kāinga Ora quietly issued a media release to “a limited number” of journalists confirming that it would halt 212 housing developments (about 3,500 homes) and would be selling off approximately 40 hectares of land. The decision was combed through by Newsroom’s Jonathan Milne a week later (as covered by The Bulletin at the time).
https://thespinoff.co.nz/the-bulletin/29-09-2025/new-zealands-bi…
# International, Public and community housing, Rent.Councils to be given power to impose rent caps
Angus Cochrane Yahoo News (No paywall)Councils in Scotland will be able to cap rent increases on some properties at a maximum of 6% under a bill backed by MSPs. Local authorities will be able to introduce controls in specially designated areas under the government's Housing (Scotland) Bill. The legislation - which was passed by 89 votes to 28 - will also require local authorities to act more quickly when tenants are at risk of homelessness, and introduce measures designed to help victims of domestic abuse.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/councils-given-power-impose-rent-20422…
# International, Rent.Rent for $1 a Month? Egypt Says No, Ending a System That Aided the Poor
Vivian Yee and Rania Khaled The New York Times (Paywall)For decades, hundreds of thousands of Egyptian families have lived in apartments for as little as less than a dollar a month, including in some of Cairo’s most expensive neighborhoods. Even as inflation surged and the currency’s value plummeted, they passed down their rental contracts from generation to generation. But that security came at the expense of landlords who saw valuable properties going for next to nothing and the housing problems officials say it created.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/07/world/middleeast/egypt-afford…
# International, .More than 40 Utopia homes upgraded in $12.4 million project
Dechlan Brennan National Indigenous Times (No paywall)More than 40 homes across six communities in Utopia have been upgraded through a joint federal and NT government initiative. The $12.4 million works delivered new kitchens, living areas, bedrooms and bathrooms in homes across Arlparra, Atheley, Indaringinya, Inkawenyerre, Inkwelaye and Iylentye. The six homelands were identified as priority areas by the Central Land Council and the peak body for Aboriginal housing in the NT, Aboriginal Housing Northern Territory.
https://nit.com.au/20-09-2025/20350/more-than-40-utopia-homes-up…
# Australia, .Build prefab homes to address harm to ‘generation of homeless children’, says Labour MP
Geraldine McKelvie and Michael Goodier The Guardian (No paywall)A Labour MP has called for the government to start building prefabricated homes in England to address the “terrible things” happening to a generation of homeless children. Dame Siobhain McDonagh, who helped found an all-party parliamentary group aimed at supporting record numbers of families in temporary accommodation after being “completely overwhelmed” by the amount of cases in her constituency, said the situation was “devastating”.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/sep/27/build-prefab-hom…
# International, Eviction.New Aboriginal housing peak body to be established in South Australia
Callan Morse National Indigenous Times (No paywall)A new Aboriginal housing peak body is set to be established in South Australia, pairing Aboriginal housing with community leadership and culturally safe solutions. The South Australian Government, via the SA Housing Trust, will provide $2.5 million over five years to support the South Australian Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation Network (SAACCON) establish the peak body to improve Aboriginal housing outcomes. The peak body will be focused on supporting the development of a community-controlled housing sector which provides both housing and housing support services, such as tenant management.
https://nit.com.au/25-09-2025/20422/new-aboriginal-housing-peak-…
# Hot topic Australia, .