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
‘No one knew we were homeless’: relief funds hope to reach students missing from virtual classrooms
Linda Jaconson The Guardian (No paywall)From the United States ... Portia and her two boys were living at the St Ambrose Family Shelter in Dorchester, Massachusetts, located in an old Catholic church, when the pandemic hit. ... Her story is a common one among families that have gone without stable living arrangements over the past year. With students learning remotely – and sometimes leaving their cameras off during Zoom sessions – teachers and other school staff have missed many of the clues that students lack permanent housing. Under the $1.9tn economic stimulus bill passed in March, the federal government has dedicated $800m to support homeless students, a commitment that advocates say will go a long way to finding those students and addressing their needs.
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/apr/30/us-homeless-st…
# International, Coronavirus COVID-19, Families, Homelessness.Sydney and Melbourne property prices slow after record-breaking boom
Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Buying a house in Sydney and Melbourne is now tens of thousands of dollars more expensive than it was just a month ago but there are signs the strongest property boom in decades is slowing.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/sydney-and-melbourne-pro…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Housing market, Tax.Real estate prices in Australia are surging. But experts say Seoul's housing market makes Australia's look tame
Carrington Clarke ABC (No paywall)If the rate of Australian home price rises is bringing a tear to your eye, you are unlikely to find much sympathy from South Koreans trying to buy in their country's capital. Seoul's property market is on a tear. Apartment prices in the metropolis of nearly 10 million people rose by an extraordinary 22 per cent in 2020, outstripping all other cities in Asia.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-06/real-estate-prices-in-seo…
# International, Housing affordability, Housing market.Rental market unusually uncertain, Nationwide says
BBC (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... The outlook for the private rental market is "unusually uncertain" after nearly two decades of growth, according to a new report. It suggests the future is clouded by "economic uncertainty" and housing preferences shifting during lockdown.
# International, Rent, Housing market.Property investors are back!
Lucy Battersby The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Property investors are rushing back into the market while first-home buyers are retreating, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. [Check this link at 2.17pm]
https://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/asx-futures-point-to-ear…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Hot housing market shows first signs of cooling off
Colin Brinsden The New Daily (No paywall)The rapid rise in house prices in recent months is showing signs of cooling as affordability constraints at a time of stagnant wage growth begins to dampen demand.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/property/2021/05/03/real-esta…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Housing market.Australian home values continue to rise, but pace of growth eases: Core Logic research
Kate Burke Domain (No paywall)Australia’s rapidly rising property prices have started to slow, with new figures showing price growth eased last month after hitting a 32-year high in March.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/australian-home-values-continue-t…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Housing market.Brokers and banks overwhelmed as Australians rush for a mortgage
Shane Wright, Jennifer Duke and Charlotte Grieve The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The nation’s banks are struggling to process an unprecedented number of new mortgages as over-excited buyers snap up high-priced homes at Saturday auctions before they have locked in the funding to close the deal. ... A combination of record-low interest rates and government support programs at the state and federal level has driven home lending levels to record highs.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/brokers-and-banks-ov…
# Australia, Federal Government, Housing market, State Government.