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
How locals are being priced out by the regional housing boom
Ellen Coulter ABC (No paywall)About 18 months ago, Dan Bakker and Gabby Rose hit a milestone. "It was looking like we were starting to get well positioned to get out of the rental market and into owning a patch of dirt ourselves," Mr Bakker said. After spending the best part of a decade saving, they thought their $100,000 deposit would get them a fixer-upper or block of land in their local area near Bermagui on the far south coast of New South Wales. They were looking for something in the $300,000 to $400,000 range. "Unfortunately, at the same time, the more and more our capacity was looking positive, prices started to go through the roof," Mr Bakker said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-06/how-locals-are-being-pric…
# NSW, Rent, Home ownership, Housing market, Regional NSW.Thousands of leaseholders in unsafe homes will be unable to sue developers
Robert Booth The Guardian (No paywall)From teh United Kingdom ... Thousands of leaseholders living in dangerous blocks will not be protected by the latest government attempt to tackle the spiralling cost of the post-Grenfell fire safety crisis, it has emerged, as ministers publish legislation allowing developers to pass on costs to residents.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/05/thousands-of-lea…
# International, Asbestos, lead, hazardous materials, Housing market.John Lewis unveils plans to build 10,000 homes for rental
(No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Department store John Lewis has announced plans to build 10,000 rental homes over the next few years to help address the national housing crisis. Around 7,000 of the homes would be built on sites in John Lewis’s existing portfolio, while the remainder will be on new sites. The high street stalwart has said it wants to have a strong social purpose in the future, and wants to play its part in addressing the national housing crisis. (ITV)
https://www.itv.com/news/2021-07-04/john-lewis-unveils-plans-to-…
# International, Rent, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Apartment towers? No thanks
Michael Paton The Fifth Estate (No paywall)The recent catastrophic failure of the apartment tower in Miami causes one to pause and reflect on their siting and utility. My first thought took me back to the Salvation Army days of my childhood. Build upon the rock not on the sand, we sang. I much later discovered that this had echoes in the traditional siting wisdom in old fengshui texts.
https://thefifthestate.com.au/innovation/residential-2/apartment…
# NSW, Housing market, Minimum habitability standards.Single Australians a growing force in property market, says ME Bank
Euan Black The New Daily (No paywall)Single Australians have overcome rising house prices to break into the property market in droves during the pandemic. Data released by ME Bank shows that singles accounted for more than a third (38 per cent) of all loan applications received by the bank in 2020, up from 35 per cent in 2019.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/property/2021/07/04/property-…
# Australia, Housing market.Nimbys are not selfish. We’re just trying to stop the destruction of nature
Ros Coward The Guardian (No paywall)Developers use this laden word when they want to obliterate wildlife and its habitats, to demonise anyone who objects
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jul/04/nimbys-nat…
# International, Planning and development.Mortgage costs to jump as interest rate rises loom, warns CBA ahead of Reserve Bank meeting
Michael Janda ABC (No paywall)Australians could soon be paying more than $26 billion a year in extra mortgage repayments as interest rates begin to "normalise", but the Commonwealth Bank argues there are several reasons why most households will be able to cope just fine. Kate Burke in 'Domain' writes another article on the same issue at: [https://www.domain.com.au/news/mortgage-repayments-could-rise-soon-than-expected-as-banks-forecast-earlier-cash-rate-hikes-1069649/?utm_campaign=strap-masthead&utm_source=smh&utm_medium=link&utm_content=pos5&ref=pos1]
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-06/mortgage-costs-to-jump-as…
# Australia, Housing market.Fears more tenants will be stuck in tenancies due to new housing standards
Charlie Dreaver (No paywall)From New Zealand ... A group of Wellington flatmates have received a nasty shock after discovering they're trapped in a lease because their landlord is biding time before getting the property up to the Healthy Home Standards. The standards have now come into effect, meaning landlords need to get their property up to spec within 90 days of a new tenancy. But renting and student advocates fear more people could become stuck in tenancies they do not want, in poor quality housing. (RNZ)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/446194/fears-more-tenants-wi…
# International, Rent, Minimum habitability standards.