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
More retirees trying to avoid going into aged care, exclusive data from Australian Seniors reveals
Laura Francis, Alan Kohler, and Chris Gillett ABC (No paywall)For a growing number of Australians, aged care is less desirable than ever before. Exclusive data from Australian Seniors reveals 43 per cent of Australians aged over 50 who were surveyed for the 2021 Mindset Shift Report say the pandemic has changed their view of aged care.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-01/retirees-trying-to-avoid-…
# Australia, Housing market, Older people.Axing coronavirus welfare payment forecast to plunge 155,000 Australians into poverty
Luke Henriques-Gomes The Guardian (No paywall)An estimated 155,000 people in Australia will be plunged into poverty this week when the pandemic boost to welfare payments expires ... National Youth Commission Australia warned the reduction in welfare payments would hit young people particularly hard. ... “High housing costs force students and young jobseekers into poverty and sub-standard accommodation, compromising their education and employment outcomes, physical and mental health,” said chair of the commission, David Eldridge from the Salvation Army.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/mar/31/axing-cor…
# Hot topic Australia, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Federal Government, Welfare, Young people.Covid frontline workers priced out of homeowning in 98% of Great Britain
Pamela Duncan, Hilary Osborne, Lydia McMullan and Niko Kommenda The Guardian (No paywall)Low-paid key workers on the frontline of the Covid-19 pandemic would not be able to afford to buy the average priced home in 98% of Great Britain, an exclusive Guardian analysis has found. Years of rising prices have put homeownership out of reach of many key workers, who have also experienced pay freezes and had to channel their wages into paying high private rents, rather than being able to save for a deposit.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/mar/30/covid-frontline-…
# Hot topic International, Rent, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership, Work, employment.Sydney rent prices: coming down … or just a downer?
Richie Black (No paywall)Few seismic shifts could compare to the idea of Sydney rents going down – but that’s what’s happening, at least in some parts of the city. Richie Black talks to the people in the thick of a changing rental landscape. (Sydney Sentinel)
https://sydneysentinel.com.au/2021/03/sydney-rent-prices-coming-…
# Hot topic, TUNSW in the media NSW, Rent, Housing market.Tighter lending rules needed to deal with growing household debt: IMF
Shane Wright The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The International Monetary Fund has urged the Reserve Bank and economic regulators to tighten lending standards to deal with the potential negative fallout from high levels of business and household debt caused by record low interest rates. ... the IMF said the low rates used to deal with the coronavirus recession would cause long-term pain without tougher limits on lending from banks and emerging non-banks ... low rates, on top of federal and state government housing support programs, have helped drive house prices above pre-coronavirus levels.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/tighter-lending-rules-ne…
# Hot topic Australia, Federal Government, Home ownership, Housing market, State Government.Investor-economist alliance dominates media's housing response
Hayden Donnell (No paywall)From New Zealand ... A huge squadron of investors and economists blitzed the airwaves following the government's big housing announcement, often drowning out other voices. In the hours after the government's big housing announcement on Tuesday, the top three stories on the Herald's homepage were all angled around reaction from property investors and economists. (RNZ Mediwatch)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/mediawatch/audio/20187…
# International, Rent, Home ownership, Housing market, Landlords and agents.The three-year housing bomb
Alan Kohler The New Daily (No paywall)As we know, the Reserve Bank’s pandemic money discount sale is having a wild effect on the housing market, but what’s less well known is that it’s a bomb that will go off in three years.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/2021/03/29/alan-kohler-housin…
# Australia, Housing market.A day with NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler, who is lifting standards in the construction industry
Ellen Lutton Domain (Paywall)The group of developers, builders and tradies are waiting nervously for the arrival of the man with the unprecedented superpowers to overhaul Sydney’s construction industry. ...
https://www.domain.com.au/news/a-day-with-nsw-building-commissio…
# NSW, Housing market, Minimum habitability standards, Planning and development.