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
Peter Colquhoun’s wife jailed in legal first over $3.6m ‘squatter’s rights’ scheme
Elodie Jakes Daily Telegraph (Paywall)In a legal first, the 78-year-old wife of a prominent Sydney lawyer has been jailed after fabricating a “squatter’s rights” claim to acquire a $3.67 million Glebe property. Grandmother Margaret Colquhoun, 78, was sentenced to two years and four months imprisonment on Monday, while her co-offender son Andrew, 40, only received an 18-month community corrections order. Charges against Margaret’s husband, Peter Colquhoun, the former principal of Rozelle law firm Colquhoun & Colquhoun, were dropped by the court.
https://www-dailytelegraph-com-au.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.dai…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent.We want your feedback on our policy priorities!
Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)Over the past couple of years, we have seen long overdue wins for renters in NSW. These are important reforms that renters, the Tenants’ Union and fellow advocates have campaigned on for decades. From ending 'no grounds' evictions to limiting rent increases to once in 12 months, and making it easier to keep a pet, these legislative changes represent real progress. But our work isn't finished. To ensure our rental system is fit for purpose and to guarantee new protections are effective in addressing ongoing challenges, we have updated our policy priorities to guide our work for the next 5 years. Before finalising these priorities, we want to hear from you.
https://www.tenants.org.au/news/we-want-your-feedback-our-policy…
# Hot topic, TUNSW in the media NSW, .More than half of Sydney suburbs rents climb after tax changes
Kaylee Cranley realestate.com.au (No paywall)Rents have soared by up to $100 a week in parts of Sydney in the months since landmark property tax reforms were announced with the May federal budget. Exclusive REA Group figures have revealed house rents climbed in 57.6 per cent of Sydney suburbs over the three months to July, while unit rents increased in 61 per cent of suburbs. The quarter tracked two of the months since changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax were announced in the budget. Recent rent hikes have meant Sydney now has more than 100 suburbs where the typical tenants pays rent of over $1000 per week.
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/more-than-half-of-sydney-subu…
# NSW, .NSW to establish first dedicated statewide LGBTQIA+ legal service
Dean Arcuri Q News (No paywall)NSW’s first dedicated statewide LGBTQIA+ legal service will be established and operated by the Inner City Legal Centre (ICLC). The LGBTQIA+ Services Hub will fill a gap in the state’s existing legal services and reduce barriers to justice for the LGBTQIA+ community. Part of a funding agreement between the Commonwealth and NSW Governments, it is expected to be fully operational by 2027. The LGBTQIA+ Services Hub will provide specialist criminal, family and civil legal advice and support. This will include family, domestic and sexual violence and workplace discrimination, vilification and harassment.
https://qnews.com.au/nsw-to-establish-first-dedicated-statewide-…
# Hot topic NSW, .The Renter Algorithm: The invisible system judging tenants
ABC (No paywall)The Privacy Commissioner has put the RentTech industry on notice over 'unfair and excessive personal information collection'.If you've rented a home recently, you've probably used one of the online platforms that promise to make applying easier. Submit all your personal details in one place, and they'll share it with the relevant real estate agents. But somewhere along the way, the intention changed. It became less about proof you have a job, can pay the rent, and won't trash the house, and more about your 'risk profile'. These platforms are collecting up to 50 points of personal data, which some agencies are using AI to sort through. So, do these tools - used this way - serve renters, or exacerbate an existing power imbalance? And how might we use them better?
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/downloadthisshow/the-rent…
# Must read, Hot topic, Audio Australia, Privacy and access.Do the big parties want more affordable housing or not?
Peter Mares Inside Story (No paywall)Angus Taylor says changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount have put housing into “freefall,” blaming Labor’s “toxic taxes” for “a collapse in the housing market.” His comments followed news that house prices have fallen across most of the nation since May and ANZ forecasts that Sydney prices could drop by up to 14.5 per cent by the end of next year. In question time, the opposition leader lamented “the worst crash in more than four decades.”
https://insidestory.org.au/do-the-big-parties-want-more-affordab…
# Australia, .Coalition plan to scrap energy rules for new houses condemned as ‘cost-of-living timebomb’
Adam Morton The Guardian (No paywall)A Coalition plan to abolish compulsory energy standards for new homes that help reduce people’s exposure to heat and cold has been criticised by advocates as a “cost-of-living timebomb” that would deepen inequality. The opposition’s housing and environment spokesperson, Andrew Bragg, said a Coalition government would cut the National Construction Code from more than 2,000 pages to 80, and strip away all requirements for new homes beyond demanding they were “basic and safe”. Longstanding compulsory energy and accessibility measures would become “optional extras”.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/aug/13/coalition…
# Australia, .Queensland social housing waitlist drops to 44,000 people as advocates call for affordable homes targets
Alex Brewster ABC (No paywall)Queensland's housing minister concedes there is more work to do, with more than 44,000 people on the state's social housing waitlist. But one advocate noted the register was not the only indicator of need, with a huge number of people ineligible, labelled the "missing middle". The latest figures for July showed 44,294 people on the waitlist, a drop from the 48,539 recorded in October 2024 when the LNP came to office. That number steadily rose over the following year, peaking in November 2025 at more than 59,000 people on the waitlist.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-19/queensland-social-housing…
# Australia, Public and community housing.