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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See notes about the Digest and a list of other contributors here. Many thanks to those contributors for sharing links with us.
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Archive
Off-grid family who trekked to safety from flooding at Upper Lansdowne return with big plans
Emma Siossian ABC (No paywall)As sunlight streams through rainforest trees, Lauren and James Archer splash in a creek with their young children. It's a typical day at their off-grid property in the hills of Upper Lansdowne on the New South Wales Mid North Coast. The Archers made a tree change from western Sydney about six years ago and, despite some significant challenges during flooding, they haven't looked back.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-09/family-embrace-off-grid-l…
# NSW, Families, Home ownership, Regional NSW.Brisbane's median property values race to a record high, jumping more than 40 per cent in some suburbs
Baz Ruddick ABC (No paywall)Queensland's property prices are moving further out of reach for first home buyers with new figures showing values in some suburbs jumped more than 40 per cent in the 12 months to March.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-10/qld-real-estate-price-sou…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market.Sky-high prices push potential home buyers to borrow to the max
Elizabeth Redman The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Some first-home buyers are stretching their borrowing to the limit to try to get into the pricey property market despite looming interest rate rises, mortgage brokers warn. Other buyers, especially owners looking to upgrade, are starting to take a more conservative approach to their debt levels as they plan for borrowing costs to rise.
https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/sky-high-prices-push-potent…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing market.Why Sydney homeowners are rushing to sell
Tawar Razaghi Domain (No paywall)Sydney homeowners are rushing to sell their properties today, with the city recording its busiest auction weekend of the year so far. It is tipped to be a Super Saturday, with 1117 homes scheduled to go under the hammer. Domain figures show auction volumes are up 28.6 per cent week-on-week, and up 57.8 per cent on the same time last year.
https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/why-sydney-homeowners-are-r…
# NSW, Housing market.Proposed changes to Canberra's real estate licencing laws seek to further protect renters and home buyers
Kate Midena ABC (No paywall)All real estate agents in Canberra could soon be required to have a minimum level of qualifications to work in the industry, as the ACT government aims to "improve protections for Canberra's renters and potential home owners"
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-07/change-could-becoming-to-…
# Australia, Housing market, Landlords and agents, State Government.Join the #MyRentedHome social media week of action!
Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)Reminder: our first Make Renting Fair action of the year start tomorrow. Join us for a week of action: Monday 4 April to Sunday 9 April! [Read on]
https://mailchi.mp/tenants.org.au/make-renting-fair-making-a-com…
# NSW, Campaigns and law reform.Rent assistance: The ticking time bomb threatening future prime ministers
Jessica Irvine The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Sometimes, you just don’t know where to start. The Prime Minister’s comments on the Today Show when asked by journalist Allison Langdon what the recent budget does for renters were so problematic, it’s not hard to see why an entire generation is outraged. But outrage should be properly founded. ... A more accurate response to the entirely reasonable question of what this budget does for renters would have been: “Not much, sorry, Ally. We didn’t actually think much about that issue in this budget.” And Morrison would be far from alone in that. Indeed, governments of both political stripes have failed over multiple decades to address the issues confronting renters, particularly low-income renters. But rental relief is now sorely needed, particularly for low-income Australians. It’s a ticking time bomb for both for renters and the budget. Let me explain.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/rent-assistance-the-…
# Hot topic Australia, Rent, Federal Government.Outasite Lite
Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)Residential Land Lease Communities following a disaster ... Our hearts go out to everyone suffering as a result of the flood disaster across the east coast. Many residential land lease communities have been hit hard by the recent floods – particularly those built on low-lying, flood-prone land. The Tenants' Union, together with Legal Aid NSW has released a special episode of our podcast: Residential Land Lease Communities following a disaster. In this episode, Bridget Barker (Legal Aid Community Legal Education, and Lismore resident) speaks to Paul Smyth (Tenants' Union Land Lease Communities Solicitor).
https://us3.campaign-archive.com/?u=29c79d2825cb376b3f0b06385&id…
# Audio NSW, Land lease communities, Climate change.