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
Accommodating adults with intellectual disabilities and high support needs in Individual Supported Living arrangements
Stian Thoresen, Patricia O’Brien, Mary-Ann O’Donovan, Brontë Walter, Arne Mueller, Greta Westermann, Erin Whittle and Angus Buchanan AHURI (No paywall)This research investigated Individual Supported Living (ISL) arrangements, which have been developed to provide appropriate and preferred homes for persons with intellectual disabilities and high support needs.
# Research alert Australia, Disability, Housing market.Everything to play for: whistleblower’s home on the line as Lendlease makes merry with tax code
Michael West (No paywall)When the top brass at Lendlease and their Big 4 tax avoidance advisers were plotting how to skin the Tax Office for $300m in a retirement village scam 10 years ago, they needed to get residents to switch from leases to loans. So they dangled $9000 payments in front of their elderly residents to entice them to swap contracts. (Michael West Media)
https://michaelwest.com.au/everything-to-play-for-whistleblowers…
# Australia, Housing market, Older people, Tax.Census finding of 1 million vacant properties amid housing crisis an 'enormous policy oversight', demographer says
Loretta Lohberger ABC (No paywall)An "enormous chunk" of Australia's housing stock is unoccupied, and "something must be done" about it, a demographer says. According to figures from the 2021 census, 1 million Australian homes — 10 per cent of the housing stock — were unoccupied on census night last August. ... [Principal solicitor at the Tenants' Union of Tasmania, Ben Bartl, said: 'The Tenants' Union is ... concerned about the number of vacant homes. It has used data from water authority TasWater to show that there were about 2,000 properties in the state that had been empty for three years.' Also, read Rachel Eddie's and Meghan Dansie's article entitled: 'Victoria is more diverse and residents have smaller mortgages, census finds' in 'The Sydney Morning Herald' at: [https://www.smh.com.au/national/victoria/victoria-is-more-diverse-and-residents-have-smaller-mortgages-census-finds-20220627-p5awtg.html]. Read Cameron Atfield's article entitled: 'Census reveals Queensland’s fastest-growing areas' in 'The Sydney Morning Herald' at: [https://www.smh.com.au/national/queensland/census-reveals-huge-growth-in-brisbane-20220628-p5ax8r.html]. Read Hamish Hastie's article entitled: 'Cashed-up, big houses and urban sprawl: How WA differs from the rest of Australia' in 'The Sydney Morning Herald' at: [https://www.smh.com.au/national/western-australia/cashed-up-big-houses-and-urban-sprawl-how-wa-differs-from-the-rest-of-australia-20220628-p5ax9i.html]
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-29/census-finds-1-million-em…
# Australia, Rent, Housing market.Fears for wellbeing of older Australians as 65,000 aged care workers leave sector each year
Christopher Knaus The Guardian (No paywall)The shortfall of aged care workers has doubled since August and 65,000 workers are leaving the sector each year, prompting fears that basic care for older Australians is being compromised. The Committee for Economic Development of Australia (Ceda) released a new report on Tuesday showing a further deterioration in the country’s aged care staffing crisis since the royal commission. The report estimates the number of direct care workers is now 30,000 to 35,000 a year short of what is needed.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jun/27/fears-for…
# Australia, Housing market, Older people.Cherbourg Aboriginal Council freezes rents for 12 months to combat cost of living pressures
Georgie Hewson ABC (No paywall)Renters in Queensland's largest Indigenous shire have had their rates frozen for a year as the council helps locals cope with the rising cost of living. The Aboriginal Shire of Cherbourg, a three-hour drive from Brisbane, is also facing a mass influx of former residents returning home in search of affordable and culturally-appropriate housing. It is contributing to the housing crisis, with 200 people on a waiting list for a home in the town of about 1,200, according to the Cherbourg Aboriginal Council.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-28/cherbourg-aboriginal-coun…
# Australia, Aboriginal renters, Rent.Indigenous-led supportive housing can be transformative
Lauren Brown, Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness, Fran Hunt-Jinnouchi and Julia O'Quinn The Conversation (No paywall)Look to any urban centre in Canada and you will find First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) peoples disproportionately experiencing homelessness. Look to any urban centre in Canada and you will find First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) peoples disproportionately experiencing homelessness. ... This pervasive trend is symptomatic of Canada’s intensifying housing crisis, coupled with the insidious impacts of past and present colonial policies. There is also a lack of housing models that take into consideration FNMI cultural knowledge and the voices of FNMI people. Looking to and learning from existing Indigenous-led and community-informed models may bring us one step closer to addressing this disparity.
https://theconversation.com/indigenous-led-supportive-housing-ca…
# International, Homelessness, Housing market, Race and ethnicity.'Forgotten' renters hope recent federal election will turn the tide for housing policies
Michael Atkin ABC (No paywall)Rosie Wallis has been renting her entire adult life, and she can't see that changing any time soon. She's only 33 years old, but she's already spent 15 years paying off other peoples' mortgages. ... According to figures from the just released 2021 Census, there are 2.8 million rental households, accounting for more than 30 per cent of the population. There were also almost one million Australian homes that were unoccupied on the night the census was conducted last August. Many of renters are coming under increasing financial pressure. Rents are skyrocketing, having increased by almost 10 per cent in the past 12 months, and low vacancy rates mean there's often little choice. ... The Albanese government has promised to build 30,000 social and affordable homes over five years. Labor will also establish a council to try to increase supply and affordability. Economist Brendan Coates calls it a big step forward, however, [Eirene Tsolidis Noyce from the Renters and Housing Union (RAHU) in Victoria] said much more was needed.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-29/forgotten-renters-hope-fo…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Rent, Affordable housing, Federal Government.Mass social housing building needed, campaigners urge as house prices rocket 7.1 times annual average earnings
Peter Lazenby (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... A mass building programme of social housing is desperately needed, campaigners urged today after new figures showed that house prices were “rocketing” and reaching unaffordable levels. Mortgage lender Halifax said that a “typical” UK home now costs 7.1 times annual average earnings. It estimated that the “average earnings” of a full-time worker are £39,402, and the average house price is £239,281 — up 16.8 per cent since the start of the pandemic in 2020. ... National tenants’ union Acorn said the problem was forcing families into the hands of unscrupulous and exploitative private landlords. Acorn Head Organiser Nick Ballard told the Star: “With fewer people able to buy a home, and having to pay much more for the privilege, families are being forced into an under-regulated, insecure private rented sector and facing poor standards and the fear of eviction. (Morning Star)
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/mass-social-housing-bu…
# International, Public and community housing, Affordable housing, Landlords and agents.