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
Canada's housing data shows recovery accelerating before rate hike
Fergal Smith Reuters (No paywall)Canada's housing market showed further signs of recovery in May following a yearlong slump, data on Thursday showed, a factor that could support additional Bank of Canada interest rate hikes.
Canadian home sales rose 5.1% in May from April and were up 1.4% year-over-year, the first increase on an annual basis since June 2021, the Canadian Real Estate Association said.
The industry group's Home Price Index edged up 2.1% on the month and was down 8.6% annually, while the national average selling price was up 3.2% on the year.
https://www.reuters.com/markets/canadas-housing-market-recovery-…
# Hot topic International, Home ownership, Housing market, International.Edinburgh holiday flats 'contribute less to the economy than residential homes'
Donald Turvill Edinburgh Live (No paywall)Residential properties make a greater contribution to Edinburgh's economy than short-term lets, a study has found.
The 'gross value added' (GVA) by homes is higher than Airbnb -style accommodation "across all property types and all areas," research commissioned by Edinburgh City Council concluded.
Although in most cases a holiday let creates more employment opportunities, a report summarising findings said tourism jobs "are not as valuable in GVA terms as other economic activity in the city".
https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/edinburgh-ho…
# Hot topic International, Housing affordability, International, Short-term holiday letting.Napier boarding houses with highest fire risk to be assessed more regularly
James Pocock NZ Herald (Paywall)Napier boarding houses deemed the most likely to be a fire risk are set to be assessed by authorities more regularly. It’s a bid to prevent a Loafers Lodge-style tragedy in Hawke’s Bay.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/napier-boarding…
# New policy announcement International, Boarders and lodgers, Security and safety, International.Not on target: 28 housing projects to cost over $750m
Anish Chand The Fiji Times (No paywall)The Housing Ministry substantially missed all its national development plan targets in the 2018-2022 period, according to the Fiscal Review Committee.
As a result, the committee says it wasn’t able to provide housing to informal settlements and first time home owners “and will need $500 million to speed up works on 48 development leases”.
In its report, the committee said between 25,000 and 28,000 households — or 40,000-120,000 — people were living in informal housing in more than 170 settlements nationwide.
https://www.fijitimes.com/not-on-target-28-housing-projects-to-c…
# Hot topic International, Housing market, International, Planning and development.Airbnb listings could be contributing to the housing crisis, NSW Government examining new tax
Mark Ferguson 7 News (No paywall)A new tax is being considered on short term rental properties like Airnb and Stayz to help ease the housing crisis. 7NEWS can reveal that the tax will be considered by the NSW Government as new figures show Australia could be in for a new housing shock.
# Hot topic, Video NSW, Campaigns and law reform, Short-term holiday letting, State Government.‘Wild west’: Australia’s would-be tenants asked about tattoos and social media as calls grow for regulation
Cait Kelly The Guardian (No paywall)There are growing calls to regulate the personal information real estate agents can request from potential tenants, with renters asked to hand over 12 months’ worth of bank statements, their personal social media profiles and in one case, whether they had prominent tattoos.
Paris Zarmairian was applying for a rental at the end of May in Sydney when her agent asked her to provide 12 months’ worth of bank statements.
The sole trader works as a consultant and advocate in the disability sector, and makes enough to comfortably cover the rent.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jun/12/wild-west…
# Must read, Hot topic, TUNSW in the media NSW, Discrimination, Privacy and access, Personal stories.Essential workers priced out of housing near Sydney workplaces face even longer commutes
Mostafa Rachwani The Guardian (No paywall)Essential workers in New South Wales such as teachers and nurses are being priced out of housing in suburbs near their workplaces and are facing longer commutes, new data reveals.
The data, provided by the Australian Urban Observatory and analysed by Guardian Australia, shows many essential workers are clustered in areas where housing is cheaper, but also that they face displacement from these areas as housing costs rise.
The data shows that essential workers in NSW are concentrated in LGAs with a majority of low-income households, including the Central Coast, Canterbury-Bankstown, Penrith, Liverpool and Campbeltown. These LGAs also have some of the highest rates of people living in community housing.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jun/08/essential…
# Must read NSW, Affordable housing, Housing affordability, Planning and development.The push to turn city office blocks into apartments
Carolyn Cummins The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The yawning space in office towers across capital cities thanks to flexible working practices post COVID-19 has reignited the debate about whether these half-empty, billion-dollar valued skyscrapers can be converted into apartments.
With demand for housing reaching near breaking point and swaths of offices sitting idle, experts say it makes sense to revisit the issue. The premium offices are not seen as candidates, but the lower-graded C and D sites on the city fringe are considered ripe for conversion.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/the-push-to-turn-city-…
# Hot topic NSW, Housing affordability, Housing market, Planning and development.