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
Homeless Sunshine Coast family finds housing, work and opportunities in Melbourne
Kylie Bartholomew, Tessa Mapstone, and Sheridan Stewart ABC (No paywall)The 31-year-old was born on the Sunshine Coast where four generations of her family have also called home. But when the rental property she was living in was sold in November 2020, Ms Liberty Page, her partner Aden Kingston, and their girls aged one and three were left homeless. They applied for hundreds of rental properties, and despite secure income and references they were forced to live in hotels and couch surf with friends.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-30/sunshine-coast-family-def…
# Australia, Rent, Housing affordability, Housing market.'Out of control' rent hike claims as new figures reveal costs of renting one bed property increased by nearly double national average
Jolene Campbell (Paywall)From Scotland ... New figures have revealed that Edinburgh and East Lothian saw the average rent for a one bed property rise from £520 in 2010 to £755 in 2021 – almost double the national cumulative increase over that period. The latest statistics have sparked warnings from community figures that rent costs across the city are ‘out of control’ and that the housing system is ‘broken’. ... Alison Watson, director of Shelter Scotland, said: “It has been an extremely tough year for many, with tens of thousands of people losing jobs and income. But the cost of putting a roof over your head in the private sector is still growing, putting extra undue pressure on families. “The housing system in Scotland is broken and we need to see action now so that no one has to face the prospect of losing their home. Families are sacrificing other essentials such as energy to heat homes and clothing to pay for extortionate rent. The rising cost of family homes mustn’t be allowed to push more children into poverty.” (Edinburgh News)
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/people/out-of-contro…
# International, Rent, Families, Housing affordability, Housing market.Treasurer opens door to property market regulators as prices continue to rise
Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has opened the door for financial regulators to intervene further in the Sydney and Melbourne property markets as house prices continue to rise. ... While Mr Frydenberg said he did not know what the regulators would do yet, he indicated there could be more limitations put on borrowing. Also check the video on 'tiny homes' within this article.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/house-prices-slow-to-the…
# Video Australia, Affordable housing, Housing market.Major changes to community schemes laws
NSW Civil & Administrative Tribunal (No paywall)The new Community Land Management Act 2021 and Community Land Development Act 2021 commenced on 1 December 2021. The new Acts align community schemes laws with the existing strata schemes laws.
https://app.getresponse.com/view.html?x=a62b&m=BMASol&mc=I6&s=Nl…
# New policy announcement NSW, Strata, Tribunal NCAT.What the sector can learn from the tenants’ climate jury
Eve Livingston Inside Housing (Paywall)30 social housing tenants from across the North of England ... were brought together over the course of three months for the climate jury, the first of its kind in social housing. Commissioned by the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) and delivered in partnership with five housing associations ... the jury published its final report this month, including 10 recommendations on how tenants, social landlords and others might work together to tackle climate change in their homes and neighbourhoods.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/insight/what-the-sector-…
# International, Public and community housing, Climate change.Alex, 84, is being evicted from his home after the collapse of Sterling Group's housing scheme
Michael Atkin ABC (No paywall)Alex Tufekcic, 84, is packing a lifetime of memories into boxes as he prepares to be evicted. Mr Tufekcic and his wife Leonie are being forced to move out in just over a week, on her birthday. ... The stress of trying to find an affordable rental where they live in Mandurah, Western Australia, is immense. ... Mr Tufekcic never imagined he was at risk of becoming homeless when he paid more than $200,000 to secure a long-term lease on a house. He is one of more than 100 mainly elderly people across the country who signed up, paying more than $18.7 million in total. But in June 2019 Sterling Group collapsed, leaving those customers facing eviction and the loss of their life savings.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-01/alex-84-evicted-after-col…
# Australia, Eviction, Homelessness, Housing affordability, Landlords and agents, Older people.Obeid-backed development at Hawks Nest to face legal challenge from traditional owners
Angus Grigg, Jeanavive McGregor and Lucy Carter ABC (No paywall)Plans for a controversial apartment development in the beachside town of Hawks Nest, secretly backed by the family of corrupt NSW politician Eddie Obeid, are set to be challenged in court by traditional owners. Shai Richardson, the interim chief executive of the Karuah Local Aboriginal Land Council, said her community wanted to regain ownership of the two beachside plots sold for $1.5 million in 2018.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-02/obeid-backed-development-…
# NSW, Landlords and agents, Planning and development.‘Bugging out’: The new property investment trend for 2022
Sue Williams Domain (No paywall)Investors in residential property will increasingly buy rental homes and opt to live there for periods over 2022 themselves, many experts believe. The new phenomenon of having a “bug-out” place – somewhere to retreat to in the case of emergencies, like COVID lockdowns – are likely to be uppermost in most investors’ minds over the next year.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/bugging-out-what-is-the-new-prope…
# Australia, Housing market, Landlords and agents.