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
Australian sprawl: why developing our way to affordable housing could backfire
Joe Hinchliffe The Guardian (No paywall)Greenfield development – that which takes place in previously undeveloped areas - is being held up as a pillar of the state government’s efforts to address south-east Queensland’s housing crisis. But those at the coalface say it will do nothing for the region’s growing homeless population, while others advocating renters’ rights identify a number of more meaningful reforms. And some economists and planning experts say it will have no impact on reducing house prices. ... Karyn Walsh, the CEO and founding member of not-for-profit organisation Micah Projects, said newly constructed outer suburbs lack transport, health and training services as well as employment opportunities needed by disadvantaged and vulnerable people. ... [Tenants Queensland’s Penny Carr said] 'Queensland rent reforms, due to come into effect next month, failed to protect tenants from no-grounds evictions due to a loophole around fixed-term agreements which was leaving renters in a state of permanent instability.'
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/sep/16/australia…
# Australia, Rent, Affordable housing, Homelessness, Housing market, No-grounds evictions, Work, employment.Crisis for landlords as one in 12 tenants pays reduced rent
Melissa Lawford (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... One in 12 tenants has had their rent reduced to help them beat the cost-of-living crisis. Buy-to-let investors are haemorrhaging rental income as soaring inflation and rocketing energy bills hammer renters’ finances. Nearly one in 12 tenants (8pc) said their landlord had given them a temporary rent reduction in the last six months, according to research by Shawbrook Bank, a mortgage lender. A further 5pc said their landlord had temporarily frozen their rent. Experts warned that Britain’s soaring rental prices are now hitting a ceiling of affordability as the cost-of-living crisis deepens. (The Telegraph)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/buy-to-let/crisis-landlords…
# International, Rent, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Those caught in housing crisis need a system that's accountable
Paul Hunt (No paywall)From New Zealand ... The stories that emerged from some Rotorua emergency and transitional housing last week are alarming. But they come as no surprise to those who have experienced the sharp end of the housing crisis in Aotearoa New Zealand – whether as individuals or whānau in desperate need of shelter, or social service providers trying to respond to an ever-increasing need. We are facing a housing crisis rooted in decades of neglect and system failure. The crisis exposes a failure of human rights and democracy. For years, democratic institutions with the responsibility to anticipate and tackle emerging crises failed to do their job. (Stuff)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/129879978/those-caught-in-housin…
# International, Tribunal NCAT, Homelessness, Housing market, Human rights.Vested interests can’t be allowed to dictate Queensland’s response to the housing crisis
Ben Smee The Guardian (No paywall)About six years ago, the Brisbane city council sought to forcibly remove a growing number of homeless people staying underneath the Go Between and Kurilpa bridges in South Brisbane. A few years later, the Queensland government placed a series of large boulders under the Kurilpa Bridge to prevent rough sleepers from returning. Government policy on housing – and this is true everywhere, not just in Queensland – has always treated elements of the problem as unsolvable; the only thing to do is to move it out of sight.
The Queensland government’s announcement this week of a housing summit has been driven partly by excellent recent reporting about the plight of homeless people in inner Brisbane. But as debate turns to solutions, homeless people and the working poor have again been shifted out of view. The sorts of ideas being championed by media outlets and politicians – releasing more land in the boondocks – make it clear that neither is prepared to push for an effective solution: one that takes policy out of the hands of developers, real-estate agents and other vested interests.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/sep/18/vested-in…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Homelessness, Housing affordability, Housing market, Planning and development, State Government.Queensland shows the way by moving against cross-border land tax minimisers
Michael Pascoe The New Daily (No paywall)It’s 44 years since Joh Bjelke-Petersen dropped death duties in Queensland, starting a quick race to the bottom by other states and destroying a valuable plank in our tax system. But now Queensland is going a small way towards making amends by opening the door for states to rationally calculate and collect land tax on a national basis – if they’re smart enough to seize the opportunity. The usual suspects in the property industry are already screaming blue murder – alleging the end of rental properties in Queensland, claiming it’s evil double taxation, forecasting the earth will split asunder and issue forth toads and serpents and so on. What they fear is that other states might know a good idea when they see one and follow suit – if they are not politically owned by the landlord class. At present, it is possible for property investors to minimise or totally avoid paying land tax by spreading their portfolio around different states.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/2022/09/19/queensland-land-ta…
# Australia, Housing market, Landlords and agents, State Government, Tax.Ontario’s Growth Plan is reducing housing affordability
Frank Clayton The Conversation (No paywall)Few Ontario residents know how land use planning regulation shapes their physical environment, including where new housing is built, the size and type of buildings, and housing density. As a result, most people are only interested in the topic when a new housing project is proposed near their homes. In reality, planning regulation has far-reaching influence on our lives, and especially on the housing crisis. It’s a primary reason for the high housing prices and rents in the Greater Golden Horseshoe — a massive region that is centred on Toronto and spans Southern Ontario. Because of this, land use planning impacts certain parts of the population more than others, including the middle class, first-time house buyers, renters, immigrants and lower-income residents. Although few pay attention to it, the development, regulation and impact of land use planning has more to do with the average person than they realize. A sweeping reform could reduce housing and rent prices, at no cost to the public purse.
https://theconversation.com/ontarios-growth-plan-is-reducing-hou…
# International, Planning and development.Uni dorms, granny flats and Airbnb taxes: Tackling Qld’s housing crunch
Matt Dennien The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Tapping into unused student accommodation, granny flat rentals, and a statewide tax on Airbnbs. These are among just some moves now under way, or up for discussion, to tackle Queensland’s housing crunch. Calls for action from across property and social service groups reached a coordinated peak this week, delivering an “urgent” roundtable convened by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Friday.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/queensland/uni-dorms-granny-flat…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Rent, Homelessness, Housing affordability, Local Government, State Government.Dramatic rethink of aged care needed as operators stare down $9.3b black hole
Clay Lucas The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)With older Australians demanding more at-home care and nursing homes costing billions more each year to run, experts say aged care needs a dramatic overhaul.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/victoria/dramatic-rethink-of-age…
# Australia, Housing market, Older people.