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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
No grounds eviction ban: Is the devil in the detail?
Karl Hoerr Law Society Journal (No paywall)The proposed reform is aimed at making the system fairer and comes at a time when a growing proportion of the state is living in rental accommodation – now sitting at 33 per cent. Some details have been announced, including the reasonable grounds that homeowners will have to establish to evict someone and the notice that will be required. But penalties for breaches of the new law, have not been revealed. And there are other aspects of the reform that are yet to emerge. So will the changes answer the calls made by tenancy advocates or open up a series of unintended consequences?
https://lsj.com.au/articles/no-grounds-eviction-ban-is-the-devil…
# Hot topic NSW, Eviction.NSW moves to outlaw asking tenants to pay for their own background checks on renter ‘blacklists’
Catie McLeod The Guardian (No paywall)Rental property application platforms would be prohibited from asking prospective tenants in New South Wales to pay for their own background checks under proposed new laws. The Minns Labor government on Tuesday announced it would introduce the legislation after feedback from renters who said they were often told that paying these “optional charges” would increase their chance of securing a home. Some widely used online rental property application platforms encourage would-be renters to pay a fee ranging from $19 to $30 for a background check they say will strengthen their application.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/article/2024/aug/06/n…
# Hot topic, New policy announcement NSW, Starting a tenancy.NSW renters to wait until next year for 'portable bonds' scheme to be introduced
Alexander Lewis ABC (No paywall)Renters will have to wait until the second half of next year for the NSW government to deliver on a key election promise aimed at easing the cost of moving home. In her first sit-down interview, the state's inaugural rental commissioner, Trina Jones, told the ABC the government was still looking for a company to develop its "portable bonds" scheme. In an Australian first, the system will digitally transfer a bond from one property to another, meaning a renter will no longer have to pay a new bond before getting back their old one. "We're talking about a product that holds $2 billion for a million bonds, so it's quite a technical back-end system," Ms Jones said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-03/stateline-nsw-rental-comm…
# Must read, New policy announcement NSW, Bond, Rent.Aussie renter's $6,500 win after estate agent's $1,100 demand: 'Held to ransom'
Stewart Perrie Yahoo News (No paywall)A renter who won a David vs Goliath battle over an absurd $1100 cleaning fee has condemned the use of "standover" tactics allowed to be used by real estate agents and landlords to squeeze tenants. Sally Coleman and her four housemates toiled to leave their Sydney rental in great condition. The musician told Yahoo Finance she applied for the $6,500 bond back, but it ended up being "frozen" and "held to ransom" in a near month-long dispute after the real estate agent ordered a $1,110 end-of-lease clean. "We looked through the exit report, which was like, I think, over 800 photos, and because it was so long, it was really difficult to tell what the actual issues were," she said.
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/aussie-renters-6500-win-after-…
# Hot topic NSW, Bond, Rent.Rental bond hack to ensure your money isn't 'held to ransom'
Stewart Perrie Yahoo News (No paywall)Renters are being warned about a little-known rule when it comes to getting your bond back. Many Aussies who end their tenancy will wait until all the I's are dotted and the T's are crossed before they officially request their bond. Hopefully, if there's nothing wrong with the property you're leaving, you should be all fine and the money will be returned. However, if there are issues then you could find yourself in a bit of bother. NSW Tenants Union CEO Leo Patterson Ross told Yahoo Finance "timing is everything" for the bond application.
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/rental-bond-hack-to-ensure-you…
# Must read, TUNSW in the media NSW, Bond, Rent.Australia's housing crisis impacts regional refugee communities
Jesmine Cheong ABC (No paywall)Refugee Khorsand Yousofzai vividly remembers the day he fled Afghanistan, leaving behind his family and the career he built in professional soccer. As the US withdrew and the Taliban took over in August 2021, the crowds at the Kabul airport meant his family couldn't say goodbye as he boarded the plane. "That moment was really scary for us and everyone," he said. "Everyone wanted to get into [the] airport and go outside Afghanistan."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-02/housing-crisis-afghan-ref…
# Must read NSW, Discrimination, Rent.‘Patronising’: Real estate slammed for ‘Tenant of the Month’ award
Brielle Burns news.com.au (No paywall)A real estate agency has come under fire after one of its franchises introduced a “degrading” and “highly patronising” award for tenants. Ray White issued an apology after a franchise presented a pair of tenants with a “Tenant of the Month” award, given to those who are a “pleasure” to deal with. “To qualify, rent must always be paid on time, your home must be well presented (and) be a pleasure to deal with,” a social media post reads. The initiative was slammed online after it was shared to a renters Facebook group, with many likening it to a ‘participation’ award. “A ‘Tenant of the Month’ award, What (is) next, (a) leash and collar,” a social media user who shared a photo of the award wrote.
https://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/renting/patronising-…
# Hot topic, TUNSW in the media NSW, Rent.How ‘squatter’s rights’ delivered a Sydney home to one man
Michaela Whitbourn The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)It was a modest fibro cottage in Sydney’s south that eventually sold for an immodest $1.5 million. But beyond the predictable tale of sky-high property prices was a legal mystery about its ownership. This is how one man became its owner under so-called “squatter’s rights”, otherwise known as adverse possession. NSW Supreme Court Justice Francois Kunc examined reams of evidence and laws dating to the 1830s in a decision that paints an intriguing portrait of the former owner of the lucrative Gymea Bay property.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/how-squatter-s-rights-delive…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent.