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.
Our main email newsletter, Tenant News is sent once every two months. You can subscribe or update your subscription preferences for any of our email newsletters here.
See notes about the Digest and a list of other contributors here. Many thanks to those contributors for sharing links with us.
We love sharing the news and hope you find it informative! We're very happy to deliver it for free, but if you find it valuable, can you help cover the extra costs incurred by making a donation?
Archive
Lismore City Council declares housing emergency, wants more units
Mia Armitage (No paywall)The Lismore City Council joined its Byron and Tweed Shire counterparts last week in declaring a housing emergency. Lismore Mayor Vanessa Ekins said the declaration at last Tuesday night’s ordinary council meeting happened alongside unanimous support for her idea to have staff investigate affordable housing and medium density opportunities in urban areas.
https://www.echo.net.au/2021/05/lismore-city-council-declares-ho…
# NSW, Affordable housing, Local Government, Planning and development.Brad had debt collectors at the door but a mortgage wellbeing service helped turn them away
Nicole Asher ABC (No paywall)Mr Hart is among nearly half a million Victorians experiencing mortgage stress, according to Digital Finance Analytics (DFA). ... "I came home one night and there were debt collectors at the back door for my council rates, which were quite substantial, not fixable in one or two payments," he said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-19/mortgage-stress-brad-hart…
# Australia, Home ownership.More houses in Sydney's west crack on sinking ground, owners launch class action
Claudia Jambor ABC (No paywall)New reports of sinking homes in Sydney's west have prompted calls for an overhaul of the state's building regulations. Homeowners Peter and Sharon Luhr are among residents on a street in Spring Farm near Camden who say they've experienced subsidence and cracking at "nearly every door and window" of their investment property. "We're all in the same boat, it's gut-wrenching," Mrs Luhr said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-18/class-action-over-sinking…
# NSW, Housing market, Minimum habitability standards.Housing SA tenant 'sticking up' for others as her Seaton home continues to fall apart from termite damage
Eugene Boisvert and Chris McLoughlin ABC (No paywall)An Adelaide public housing tenant says she has waited two years for termite damage in her home to be fixed and has grass growing through her bedroom floor.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-18/housing-sa-tenant-highlig…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Repairs.Community comes together to look for affordable rental accommodations
Neha Attre (No paywall)A lack of affordable accommodation options in Goulburn has brought members of the community together to work on a solution to the problem. Resident Ange Harding decided to create a community group Goulburn Help A Mate on Facebook after hearing about a local family who was evicted. "They were facing homelessness after trying to secure an accommodation for months. That was the straw that broke the camel's back," she said. [Read on] (Goulburn Post)
https://www.goulburnpost.com.au/story/7255713/community-group-th…
# NSW, Affordable housing, Homelessness.Modular housing can help house homeless young people
Seyi Obakin Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Youth homelessness is a tough problem to solve, but modular housing may help provide the answer. [Read on]
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/comment/modular-housing-can-help…
# International, Homelessness, Housing market, Young people.Converting offices post-COVID could lead to ‘surge in sub-standard home conversions’, LGA warns
Lucie Heath Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Office blocks left empty after the COVID-19 pandemic could be turned into ‘sub-standard’ homes, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned as an analysis reveals the impact of office-to-residential conversions over the past five years. ... Over the past few years the government has expanded the scope of permitted development rights to make it easier for developers to convert empty buildings, but these types of conversions have been heavily criticised for the poor housing that is often created as a result. ... [David Renard, the LGA’s housing spokesperson, said:] “We have long had concerns over the sub-standard housing created from permitted development conversions, and the lack of any requirement for developers to provide affordable homes or supporting infrastructure."
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/converting-offices-post-cov…
# International, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market, Planning and development.Councils still failing to accommodate rough sleepers despite court ruling
Lucie Heath Inside Housing (Paywall)Some local authorities in England are still failing to provide emergency accommodation to rough sleepers despite a High Court ruling that found councils have the legal powers to help those who would not usually be eligible for support for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Housing charity Shelter, which was involved in the “landmark” High Court case, has warned that councils are leaving themselves open to legal challenge if they fail to accommodate people facing street homelessness while there is still a COVID-19 epidemic in England. In March a High Court judge ruled that councils can lawfully provide accommodation to those who they would not normally provide with support, for example due to their immigration status, during the COVID-19 crisis. The case involved a former asylum seeker, Timon Ncube, who found himself sleeping on the streets after his claim for asylum was refused.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/councils-still-failing…
# International, Homelessness, Local Government.