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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
South Coast council begs holiday home owners to rent out properties as housing crisis escalates
Holly Tregenza and Fatima Olumee ABC (No paywall)A coastal New South Wales council is begging 7,500 holiday home owners from Canberra and Sydney to make their properties available to renters to ease the region's housing crisis. Eurobodalla Shire Council Mayor Mathew Hatcher has written to a total of about 8,000 non-resident ratepayers who own homes along the South Coast, urging them to consider renting them out for one to two years while long-term solutions can be established. ... "We can't wait years for homes to be built. We need to address the lack of rental properties in our community right now." ... The shortage of affordable rental accommodation in the area has left more than 50 people living at a campground near Moruya because they have no alternative option. More than a third of all houses in the Eurobodalla are the second homes of people who permanently reside outside the area. Mr Hatcher said he wanted to avoid going down a regulatory route, like that being pursued in Byron Bay, where local councils reduce the number of days homes can be made available for short-term holiday stays.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-23/south-coast-council-asks-…
# NSW, Rent, Housing market, Regional NSW, Short-term holiday letting.NSW property tax: A guide to the First Home Buyer Choice scheme
Domain (No paywall)[This guide] outlines what changes have been announced so far and explains how the new property tax could work. It’s designed to provide general information on the proposed changes to keep people informed, and will be updated with new information as it becomes available.
https://www.domain.com.au/advice/guide-to-nsw-property-tax-10620…
# NSW, Home ownership, Housing market, State Government, Tax.How Australia is dealing with Airbnb, Stayz in a housing crisis
Alicia Nally ABC (No paywall)As more Australians find it harder to secure housing and the cost of goods and services skyrockets, local and state governments have aimed their considerable legislative weaponry at short-stay accommodation providers. Some councils have increased rates on properties listed on platforms such as Airbnb and Stayz, while state governments have capped the number of days these properties can be rented out as holiday accommodation. Here is the latest on what rules govern the use of properties for short-term stays around Australia.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-24/airbnb-stayz-short-term-a…
# Australia, Rent, Housing market, Local Government, Short-term holiday letting, State Government.It is critical that the housing bubble is safely deflated
Geoff Davies Pearls and Irritations (No paywall)Stratospheric housing prices are perhaps the most critical domestic issue in Australia. Not only are a collapse of the housing bubble and a recession now threatening, but homelessness and rent stress, unaddressed and exploited, can quickly fester into ugly politics.
https://johnmenadue.com/it-is-critical-that-the-housing-bubble-i…
# Australia, Rent, Home ownership, Homelessness, Housing affordability, Housing market.Giving free legal advice to the most vulnerable
Jimmy Thompson (No paywall)Here at Flat Chat we frequently recommend that cash-strapped apartment residents make use of the services provided by Marrickville Legal Centre, if they need strata law support but can’t afford commercial rates. But every time I do that, I get a twinge of guilt because I know the service – based in Marrickville, Sydney, but serving strata owners and residents all over NSW – is already pushed to the limit of its resources. (Flat Chat)
# NSW, Strata, Tenants Advice and Advocacy Services.Why the housing and homelessness sector needs to do more to recognise the needs of young trans people
Lauren Page-Hammick and Jotepreet Bhandal Inside Housing (No paywall)Many homelessness and housing organisations have been talking on social media about their support for Pride. But, Lauren Page-Hammick and Jotepreet Bhandal argue, there are concrete steps they should be taking to make sure services are accessible and welcoming to young trans people experiencing homelessness
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/home/why-the-housing-and-ho…
# International, Discrimination, Homelessness, Young people.Crisis housing at breaking point as Wheatbelt mother-of-two homeless despite full-time job
Sam McManus ABC (No paywall)Homelessness across the Wheatbelt has now passed crisis point, according to regional providers of emergency housing. Northam Share and Care, a not-for-profit providing crisis housing, said even those with well-paying jobs were being left out in the cold due to a lack of available homes. Monique (not her real name), a 29-year-old mother of two, moved to the Avon region last year to escape domestic violence. She is now living in a caravan and shares a bed with her daughters who are both under the age of 10. "You can hear the mice and rats running "You can hear the mice and rats running around. It's not something where you can lock your doors and feel safe," she said. "We have a little camp shower and I've bought an expensive chemical toilet which I empty at the chemical waste place.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-24/homelessness-crisis-wa-wh…
# Australia, Domestic violence, Families, Homelessness, Housing market, Women.ERHIN awards, winners announced press release
(No paywall)On the 16th of June 2022, we celebrated the ERHIN Final Ceremony awarding the winners of each of the five categories. The Ceremony took place in the context of the International Social Housing Festival in Helsinki and was the occasion to finally meet in person and mutually learn from each other´s good practices in the housing sector. (International Union of Tenants)
https://www.iut.nu/news-events/erhin-awards-winners-announced-pr…
# International, Public and community housing, International.