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
Wittenoom's last resident evicted as WA government shuts down asbestos-contaminated town
Cameron Carr and Andrew Tyndall ABC (No paywall)The last resident remaining in the asbestos-contaminated town of Wittenoom, 80-year-old Lorraine Thomas, has been evicted from her home. Her daughter, Aileen Thomas, said bailiffs and government officials arrived at the property without warning on Thursday. Aileen said her mother struggled to comprehend the situation when she was told to pack up and go.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-08/last-resident-of-asbestos…
# Australia, Eviction, Asbestos, lead, hazardous materials.Rescuers praised in Dungog halfway house fire that killed 12 people (1991)
ABC (No paywall)Rescuers are being praised for preventing an even greater loss of life in the fire that razed a halfway house in the NSW Hunter Valley town of Dungog. 12 people were killed but 28 others got out al,most unscathed. Many were helpless in their beds as flames spread through the old building at Dungog near Maitland. Rescuers dashed repeatedly through fierce heat to bundle them to safety.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-31/rescuers-praised-in-dungo…
# History, Video NSW, Homelessness.Which banks are passing on the latest RBA interest rate rise to mortgage holders? NAB kicked it off, then ANZ and Commonwealth followed suit
Dannielle Maguire ABC (No paywall)On Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised interest rates by 0.5 of a percentage point, taking the cash rate target to 2.35 per cent. It wasn't until Friday afternoon that the National Australia Bank (NAB) and ANZ announced they were passing on the rise in full to mortgage holders. By Friday evening, Commonwealth Bank followed suit but many other banks were yet to say if they'd raise their rates or not.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-09/rba-interest-rate-rise-an…
# Australia, Housing market.CGT on sale of rental property may not be as bad as you think
George Cochranw The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Once you rented your house for more than six years, you are taken to have purchased it at the time you first rented it – not at the end of the sixth year. This is called the “home first used to produce income rule”. [Read on]
https://www.smh.com.au/money/super-and-retirement/cgt-on-sale-of…
# Australia, Landlords and agents, Tax.Who is new housing secretary Simon Clarke?
Grainne Cuffe Inside Housing (Paywall)Mr Clarke pledged public support for Liz Truss ahead of her appointment, claiming she will “take decisive and immediate action” to support families and businesses affected by soaring energy bills. The new housing secretary could be positive in terms of building new homes and achieving net zero. He has publicly supported regeneration projects, particularly in the North. In May, he tweeted that it would be a “disaster for the Conservatives” if “we do not build the homes we need, where we need them. But much, much more importantly, it will be a disaster for generations of people who will not be able to own a good home,” he said. Mr Clarke is an outspoken advocate of tackling climate change. ... In terms of voting history, in September 2018, Mr Clarke voted against higher fines for landlords or letting agencies breaching the law, limiting what tenants can be charged for. In the same month, he also voted not to further restrict the circumstances in which landlords and letting agents can charge tenants for losses arising from a breach of a tenancy agreement. It will be interesting to see where he stands on private rented sector reforms, which the government is currently in the process of legislating.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/insight/who-is-new-housi…
# International, Public and community housing, Rent, Federal Government, Housing market.More Australians are renting long-term, but tenants' rights are far behind
Isabel Moussalli ABC (No paywall)As home ownership becomes increasingly out of reach for many Australians, more and more people are resigning themselves to the reality of being renters for life. Housing experts say as the number of long-term renters continues to rise, the nation should start looking overseas where rents rises are controlled and leases of up to five years are not uncommon. (ABC PM)
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/pm/renting-long-term-but-t…
# TUNSW in the media, Audio Australia, Rent, Families, Housing market, No-grounds evictions.‘We screamed our hearts out for help’: homeless escape Pakistan floods
Shah Meer Baloch The Guardian (Paywall)Hundreds of thousands of homes are under water in Sindh province, and locals have no food and say the state has abandoned them. ... Ali Baksh, a farmer, came and pointed his fingers towards the flood water, where crops of rice and wheat had been cultivated but been buried and washed away. “There was no rain a few months back and there was a severe shortage of water for crops,” he said. “We prayed for rain. But when it rained, we became homeless and our crops were destroyed. We have nothing left.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/06/we-screamed-our-he…
# International, Homelessness.Supporting vulnerable tenants during a crisis
Pamela Hunter Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)When the pandemic first hit Australia, COVID-19 did not discriminate, and we saw people of all walks of life impacted. The same now goes for the rising cost of living. It too does not discriminate, and we are all feeling the pinch. The difference this time around is that landlords hold the upper hand in how much of the impact they pass on to their tenants. With rising interest rates, vacancy rates at an all-time low and increasing pressure on household expenses, rent increases are disproportionately impacting the more vulnerable in our communities. ... At VERTO’s Tenancy Advice and Advocacy Service (TAAS), we continue to see an increase in no-grounds terminations in many markets. These terminations allow a landlord to evict a tenant without reason, giving them just 90 days to find alternate housing. This year alone, the number of tenants seeking our service due to one of these eviction notices has risen by a staggering 190%.
https://www.tenants.org.au/blog/supporting-vulnerable-tenants-du…
# NSW, Rent, Housing market, No-grounds evictions, Regional NSW, Tenants Advice and Advocacy Services.