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
TQ News August 2021
(No paywall)Get all the latest news from Queensland ... [Penny Carr, CEO Tenants Queensland writes:] 'Well what an eventful time it has been since the last Tenants Queensland Member Newsletter! The Queensland State Government has officially recommenced the rental reforms process, but there are a number of issues with their draft legislation, not the least being their proposal to allow unfair evictions to continue. Even though there are some good reforms around issues such as keeping of pets and domestic& family violence provisions, the changes don't go far enough. You can read more about this [in the newsletter] and find out how to help us improve the conditions for Queensland renters. (Tenants Queensland) For previous newsletters, go to: [https://tenantsqld.org.au/about-tuq/tenants-queensland-annual-report/]
https://tenantsqld.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Member-News…
# Australia, Rent, Campaigns and law reform.A missed opportunity: Big Housing Build leaves Broadmeadows behind
Joseph Haweil The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Mention Broadmeadows and the immediate response of most interlocutors can easily be predicted. Often fear, sometimes disdain, but always pity. These responses reflect the pervading stigma that continues to associate this battler community with its most frequent media characterisation, focusing on sky-high levels of unemployment, family violence, crime and endemic generational disadvantage. These responses belie the truth about Broadmeadows. That it is in fact home to a proud and resilient community of welcoming families, friends and neighbours who look out for each other and work hard to build a better future. While there is no concealing the significant challenges facing Broadmeadows, history has proven that the suburb has consistently been placed in the “too-hard basket” and completely forgotten – much like the suburb’s largest social housing site, Banksia Gardens. Home to one of the state’s most vulnerable communities, Banksia Gardens is a stark example of how successive governments – from both sides of the political divide – have walked away from and forgotten about social housing in Broadmeadows. ... With most of Broadmeadows’ social housing being constructed between 1950 and 1969, the houses across the suburb, and particularly at Banksia Gardens, fall well short of the liveability that the residents rightly want and deserve. Too many homes are in some instances, literally falling apart. ... The redevelopment of Broadmeadows’ social housing must be a key Big Housing Build funding priority; not merely an afterthought. I take the Premier at his word when he says the Big Housing Build program will change lives. It’s time for the Victorian government to see the immense opportunity that the people of Broadmeadows see, right the wrongs of the past and change lives where the need is greatest.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/victoria/a-missed-opportunity-bi…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Repairs, Estate renewal, Minimum habitability standards, State Government.Australia's fertility rate is at a record low. This expert says it's a disaster waiting to happen
Anna Kelsey-Sugg and Skye Docherty for Saturday Extra ABC (No paywall)[ANU demographer Liz Allen says] 'It's very unlikely Australia will ever see a baby boom again, let alone now during a health and economic crisis like COVID-19." Australia's not alone. It's following a global trend, with other countries including the UK and US, Italy, Japan and South Korea that are also experiencing significant fertility decline. ... A low fertility rate isn't a problem "in its own right", Dr Allen says. However, combined with an aging population, it equates to "economic uncertainty", posing the question as to how Australia can remain economically strong with fewer people to contribute to "government coffers". ... "You feel insecure in your employment, you're not sure what the world's going to look like in five years' time, you don't know whether you're going to be able to afford to buy a property [or] will be in expensive short-term rental accommodation." Concerns such as these take a toll.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-24/fertility-rates-in-austra…
# Australia, Rent, Affordable housing, Families, Health, Young people.BEIS opens bidding for first wave of Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund
Nathaniel Barker Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... The Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has estimated that this round of funding will see up to 38,000 social homes receive energy-efficiency upgrades such as insulation or new doors, windows and heating systems. Tenants whose homes have works funded through the scheme will also save around £170 a year on energy bills, the department added. You can read the BEIS media release at: [https://www.gov.uk/government/news/warmer-greener-and-cheaper-homes-as-government-opens-a-triple-win-upgrade-for-social-housing]
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/beis-opens-bidding-for…
# International, Public and community housing, Utilities water energy internet, Climate change, Federal Government, Housing market.Why housing evictions must be suspended to defend us against coronavirus
Sophia Maalsen, Chris Martin, Dallas Rogers and Emma Power The Conversation (No paywall)Here's a story from last year that we're running again ... The COVID-19 pandemic is a double crisis affecting public health and the economy. And both aspects are playing out in our housing system – in our homes. More and more of us are being directed to stay home, to work from home, or to socially isolate at home. Our homes are the “first line of defence against the COVID-19 outbreak”, as the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Housing puts it. But, depending on how our housing system responds, it could make the double crisis worse.
https://theconversation.com/why-housing-evictions-must-be-suspen…
# Hot topic NSW, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Federal Government, Health, International, State Government.What if housing never becomes affordable?
ABC (No paywall)Everyone knows Australian house prices are completely bananas, but understanding why stumps even the experts. o will the current trends continue? And if so, where does that leave renters? Today on The Signal, we ask why our housing market is so weird, and explore one counterintuitive idea about how to improve it. (ABC The Signal)
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/the-signal/australian-hous…
# Audio Australia, Rent, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market.Airbnb to help house up to 20,000 Afghan refugees
Alex Hern The Guardian (No paywall)From the United States ... Airbnb will help house up to 20,000 Afghan refugees, the company has announced, as part of its Airbnb.org charitable arm. The company will coordinate with Airbnb hosts who want to offer their homes to refugees for free, or at a discounted rate, with the charitable organisation picking up the rest of the bill, as well as any other operational expenditures. Same story on the BBC at: [https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58315378]
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/aug/24/airbnb-help-h…
# International, Race and ethnicity, Short-term holiday letting.Wilcannia families struggling to isolate in overcrowded housing
Keira Jenkins SBS (No paywall)Families in Wilcannia living in overcrowded homes are struggling to isolate, while the peak health body for Aboriginal people is demanding the Federal government fix remote housing. ... Barkindji man Ronnie Murray is trying to protect his community. His family is among many in Wilcannia trying to follow the health advice and isolate to stop the spread of COVID-19. But with 10 people in his house, the overcrowding is making it almost impossible. (NITV The Point)
https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2021/08/24/wilcannia-familie…
# NSW, Aboriginal renters, Coronavirus COVID-19, Federal Government, Housing market.