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
Landlords Broke AC Units and Called CPS to Force Out Tenants During the Pandemic
Matthew Gault (No paywall)A Congressional investigation into four corporate landlords has revealed coercion, scare tactics, and deceit designed to force tenants from their homes during the height of the pandemic. An eviction moratorium was meant to protect vulnerable out-of-work people from ending up on the street during an unprecedented health disaster. But landlords still managed to evict tenants during the moratorium and the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis after hearing that some major landlords were violating CDC regulations. The investigation focused on Pretium Partners, the Siegel Group, Invitation Homes, and Ventron Management, which are four of the largest corporate landlords in the country. It found that the companies filed a total of 14,744 evictions from March 2020 to July 2021. The report singled out Siegel in particular.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/3addvk/landlords-broke-ac-units-…
# International, Eviction, Coronavirus COVID-19, Landlords and agents.'Significant, insidious' and often unreported, financial elder abuse is increasing, lawyers say
Norman Hermant ABC (No paywall)A woman was left with nowhere to go after transferring her home to her son. Lawyers say it is a classic case of financial elder abuse, which they believe is increasing. It is a hidden issue that is "alive and well" in Australia, advocates say
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-05/lawyers-say-financial-eld…
# Australia, Older people.New Adelaide accommodation for domestic violence victims expected to be full within weeks
Shari Hams ABC (No paywall)Eight new units have been set up in an undisclosed location in Adelaide to help women and children escape domestic violence. South Australia is the first state to get new upgraded facilities, with other states set to follow suit. It is a part of $20 million federal government program to upgrade domestic violence services across the nation. The Adelaide facility, operated by the Salvation Army, will accommodate approximately 40 people, with on average one adult and four children per property.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-05/sa-domestic-violence-refu…
# Australia, Domestic violence, Homelessness, Women.No mortgage? Here's why you should still pay attention to interest rate rises
Velvet Winter ABC (No paywall)According to PropTrack senior economist Paul Ryan, a rising cash rate does not automatically mean your rent is going to go up. ... A combination of factors including returning international students and tourists, as well as housing market changes brought by COVID has seen rents rise dramatically over the last 12 months. ... But now, with people returning to capital cities, the pressure is back on rental properties in the city – with the possibility of even more competition caused by ripple effects from interest rate rises. "You may see some people who would be first home buyers priced out of the market. They can't borrow as much as they could 12 months ago so that puts upward demand on rentals and on rents," Mr Ryan said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-07/no-mortgage-interest-rate…
# Australia, Rent, Housing market.What do Queensland’s upcoming rental reforms mean for me?
(No paywall)New rental laws will come into effect in Queensland in under two months, with most changes working in favour of tenants. Most of the changes are being phased in over three years, but 1 October 2022 will see reform around pets and terminating tenancies. (rent.com.au)
# Australia, Rent, Minimum habitability standards, No-grounds evictions, Pets.The average Australian landlord isn't who you might imagine
Angus Moore (No paywall)Australia is unusual in that the vast majority of the residential dwelling stock is owned by households – more than 95% of it, in fact. That's unlike some other countries, where government or corporate ownership of rentals is more common, such as with build-to-rent developments. What do Australian property investors typically look like? If you imagine some ultra-rich mogul with dozens of properties, you might be surprised.
https://www.realestate.com.au/insights/the-average-australian-la…
# Australia, Rent, Federal Government, Housing market, Landlords and agents, Tax.We know what the problems are in housing, and we have known for a century where to find the solutions
Alison Inman Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Alison Inman stumbles across a book in a second-hand bookshop that reveals as much about housing today as it does the problems when the book was published, in 1931 ... She concludes: 'Until housing is given the political, social and economic priority that we know it needs, then there will be another edition of this lovely little book in another 90 years. We must do better.'
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/comment/we-know-what-the…
# History International, Public and community housing, Rent, Families, Housing market.Federal minister urges Australians to help tackle homelessness ‘in their back yard’
Paul Karp The Guardian (No paywall)Australians will be challenged to stop resisting solutions “in their back yard” to the homelessness crisis, as the Albanese government attempts to drive social housing construction. The housing and homelessness minister, Julie Collins, will make the comments in a speech to the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute on Monday, in which she also accuses the Coalition of a “decade of inaction” on homelessness. Collins’ speech, an advance copy of which was seen by Guardian Australia, suggests the commonwealth will take greater responsibility for housing, accepting that “the task of ensuring every Australian has a safe place to call home is not someone else’s job” – and not one that will be left to the states.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/aug/08/federal-m…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Federal Government, Homelessness.