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
IMF calls on regulators to rein in booming Sydney, Melbourne house prices
Shane Wright and Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Australian regulators have been urged to cool the booming housing market, with the International Monetary Fund warning a property price correction would pose a significant risk to the nation’s economic stability. Tightening restrictions on lending is among major recommendations from the IMF to take the heat out of the property sector along with ramping up home building and reforming generous housing-related tax benefits. ... IMF Australia mission chief Harald Finger said rising house prices were “collateral damage” from low interest rates to help stabilise the economy during coronavirus and reach the Reserve Bank’s inflation target. ... In its report, the IMF also encouraged policymakers to consider housing supply reforms, including better planning, zoning and infrastructure, as well as incentives to local councils to streamline zoning regulations and improve infrastructure. Promoting flexible working arrangements was also pointed out as a possibility, helping move workers out of cities and improving affordability.“In addition, governments should focus on providing targeted fiscal support for low-income households and expand social housing,” the IMF said.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/imf-calls-on-regulators-…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Federal Government, Housing affordability, Housing market, Local Government, Planning and development, State Government, Tax.Berlin Referendum Could Determine the Future of the City’s Housing
Aggi Cantrill and Hayley Warren (No paywall)From Germany ... [On Sunday, 26 September 2021 voters in Berlin] will decide whether the government should take control of apartments from the biggest landlords to protect affordable housing. ... [This results from] a grassroots fight to transfer rental properties owned by landlords with more than 3,000 units to public entities. Activists have succeeded in getting a referendum — advisory rather than binding — on the ballot for Sept. 26, the same day as Germany’s national and local elections. If passed — by no means a foregone conclusion — that proposal could mean 226,000 apartments going into public ownership. As cities around the world grapple with similar affordable-housing crises, Berlin’s electorate would be the first to vote on possible measures to wrest back properties from private landlords. (Bloomberg City Lab)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-09-23/berlin-refere…
# International, Affordable housing, Campaigns and law reform, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Welsh renters given six-month notice periods until end of year
Lucie Heath Inside Housing (Paywall)Six-month notice periods will remain in place in Wales for the majority of evictions until at least the end of December as ministers choose to extend COVID-related protections. ... As before, the rule will apply to all evictions except for instances where the tenancy is being ended due to anti-social behaviour or domestic violence. ... According to an explanatory note published by the Welsh government, “there remains the potential for a significant number of evictions in the private rented sector” in Wales. “Without a longer period to offer support, address rent arrears, and for landlords and tenants to prepare for potential eviction, local authorities could struggle to meet the demand for temporary accommodation, which could lead to a large number of people potentially sleeping rough,” it said. Ms James said that the increased notice periods will give renters a longer period of time to seek support for rent arrears, including by applying to the government’s Tenancy Hardship Grant scheme.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/welsh-renters-given-si…
# International, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.Why Housing Affordability Is A Structural Issue
Martin Niorth (No paywall)We discuss my submission to the current Housing Affordability inquiry which the Federal Government is running at the moment. We have been tracking the ranks of inquiries into the housing market and housing affordability over this time-frame and note the considerable duplication of effort from the many inquiries which have been undertaken, but without real change. The issue is clouded by self-interest, misdirection, and short-term political agendas. As a recent report put it “The scale of the housing market in the Australian economy and the diffuse, often disconnected, spread of policy powers that address different aspects of this system make the Parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant a perfect metaphor for our current predicament”. ... Financialisation Is The Problem ... An important report from the Special Rapporteur to the UN Human Rights Council highlights the “financialization of housing” and its impact on human rights. If you want to understand the rise in property investment in Australia, and the problem of housing affordability, read this! Sydney and Melbourne are “Hedge Cities”. You cannot fix housing affordability without addressing the investment class. (Digital Finance Analytics Blog)
https://digitalfinanceanalytics.com/blog/why-housing-affordabili…
# Must read Australia, Rent, Federal Government, Home ownership, Housing affordability, State Government, Tax.The Big Ten Donors: property developers ratchet up their spending on politicians
Callum Foote (No paywall)Despite moves to tackle the toxic influence of property developer donations in NSW and Queensland, the rate of donations made by property developers is increasing, and is increasingly concentrated among a few large players, according to new research from the Centre for Public Integrity (CPI). ... Cameron Murray, an economist at the University of Sydney and author of A Game of Mates, says that property developers are after concessions such as “favourable rezoning decisions and to avoid future taxes on their property portfolios.” According to Murray, all property and construction industry interactions of this sort with the government are conducted with the intention of increasing profits which means to keep property prices as high as possible. ... Moreover, due to the involvement of the council, state and federal government on property decisions “property developers are very politically active at all levels. It’s the smart thing for them to be active at all levels with donations being just one way to get involved” says Murray. (Michael West Media)
https://www.michaelwest.com.au/the-big-ten-donors-property-devel…
# NSW, Federal Government, Housing market, Landlords and agents, Local Government, Planning and development, State Government.International students to return to NSW by the end of the year
Anna Patty and Alexandra Smith The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Hundreds of international students will start returning to NSW by the end of this year, although vaccine restrictions will mean students from key markets in China and Nepal are not likely to be among them. ... NSW universities have discussed quotas based on their 2019 enrolment numbers and all international students will be required to quarantine in purpose-built student accommodation.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/international-students-to-re…
# Australia, Students.NSW off-the-plan apartment buyers soon able to claim on insurance defects arising within first 10 years
Sue Williams Domain (No paywall)Buyers of off-the-plan high-rise apartments in NSW might soon be able to claim on insurance for any defects arising within the first 10 years in a massive game-changer for the apartments sector. Unlike for all other new homes, there’s been no home warranty insurance available for apartment developments over three storeys in height anywhere in Australia for the past 18 years. But now, after the NSW government appointed a building commissioner and gave him unprecedented legal powers to check up on buildings as well as introducing a new digital tool to rate risks on new projects, insurers are now queuing up to offer insurance.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/nsw-off-the-plan-apartment-buyers…
# NSW, Strata, Housing market.‘Put your man pants on’: Building watchdog tells ASIC to do its job
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler has launched a blistering attack on the nation’s corporate regulator, telling it to “put your man pants on” and do more to help crack down on misconduct in the construction industry. Mr Chandler took aim at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission due to few signs of progress in its investigation into Ralan Group, two years after administrators raised serious concerns about the circumstances behind the Sydney property developer’s collapse.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/put-your-man-pants-on-buildi…
# NSW, Strata, Housing market.