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
National property boom running out of steam
Sezen Bakan The New Daily (No paywall)The pandemic property boom is running out of steam in Sydney and Melbourne but surging ahead in Brisbane and Adelaide.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/2021/12/01/house-prices-growt…
# Australia, Housing market.The houses you can buy for less than $1 million in the major capitals
Tawar Razaghi Domain (No paywall)Houses for less than a million dollars are becoming harder to come by as the median price in almost every capital city broke new records this year.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/the-houses-you-can-buy-for-less-t…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Housing market.‘The boom isn’t over’: Housing market growing, just not by as much
Ellen Lutton The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Australia’s pandemic property boom continues its upwards trajectory, with the latest figures revealing housing values rose in November for the 14th month in a row. Property values have climbed more than 20 per cent over the year nationally, adding approximately $126,700 to the median value of an Australian home. But the market is losing steam. Also, read her story in 'Domain' at: [https://www.domain.com.au/news/australian-property-values-rise-but-at-their-slowest-pace-since-january-1109195/?utm_campaign=strap-masthead&utm_source=smh&utm_medium=link&utm_content=pos5&ref=pos1]
https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/the-boom-isn-t-over-housing…
# Australia, Housing market.Auction clearance rates soften across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane
Sarah Webb The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Auction clearance rates softened in Sydney, Brisbane and particularly Melbourne over the weekend, as buyers regained a little power in a market now offering more stock for sale than it has in months.
https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/auction-clearance-rates-sof…
# Australia, Housing market.Top tips for bidding in a hot property auction market
John Collett The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The odds of being the successful bidder at a property auction can be improved by being well-informed and having a strategy, rather than just showing up and hoping for the best.
https://www.smh.com.au/money/investing/top-tips-for-bidding-in-a…
# Australia, Housing market, Landlords and agents.On the use of 'no grounds' evictions in regional NSW
ABC (No paywall)'The renters who have been living in that home are not only having to move, but often are just not finding anywhere to move to. So they are desperate, and they could possibly be facing homelessness.' Jemima Mowbray from the Tenants' Union of NSW talks with Josh Szeps, Afternoons on ABC Radio, about the need to get rid of 'no grounds' evictions from our tenancy laws. Listen to the full episode here.
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/sydney/programs/afternoons/afternoo…
# Audio NSW, Rent, No-grounds evictions, Regional NSW.The compelling case for a future fund for social housing
Brendan Coates The Conversation (No paywall)As more and more Australians are forced into private renting, including Australians who once would have owned homes or lived in social housing, more are living in poverty, suffering financial stress and becoming homeless. Social housing – where rents are typically capped at 25% of tenants’ incomes – used to make a big difference to the lives of many vulnerable Australians. ... But the stock of social housing – currently around 430,000 dwellings – has barely grown in 20 years, during a time Australia’s population has grown 33%.
https://theconversation.com/the-compelling-case-for-a-future-fun…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Rent, Affordable housing, Federal Government, Housing market.Rental Affordability Index reveals the cost of rent now skyrocketing in some Queensland regions
Jessica Stewart ABC (No paywall)A Sunshine Coast family forced to live out of a caravan are among thousands feeling the brunt of a rental market experts believe is "approaching the point of catastrophe." The latest annual report based on the Rental Affordability Index (RAI) reveals there has been a significant decline in affordability across some regions in Queensland, with the cost of rent now skyrocketing. RAI creator Adrian Pisarski said the new data showed a "pretty dire situation". ... Mr Pisarski said the situation would only get worse, not better, without significant intervention from the federal and state governments. "I think we've been in a crisis for quite a long time and, you know, we're approaching a situation of catastrophe, especially for people like pensioners and people on JobSeeker," he said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-26/rai-rental-market-approac…
# Australia, Rent, Federal Government, Housing affordability, State Government.