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
Who’s who of East Melbourne object to luxury apartments
Simon Johanson The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Low-profile developer Harold Handelsman is joining the rush to build luxury boutique apartments in leafy East Melbourne, overcoming a who’s who list of objectors on the way.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/who-s-who-of-east-melb…
# Australia, Planning and development.The things you never told me ....
Giles Peaker (No paywall)This was a claim in negligent misstatement brought by Ms J. ... The brief facts – in 2014 Ms J was looking into a mutual exchange with the tenant of a ground floor flat in Finsbury Park. This was one of two flats in a Victorian terrace, both tenanted and for which L&Q were the landlord. An L&Q housing officer, Ms James took on providing assistance for the exchange, including preparation of legal documents. [Ms J.] asked Ms James to provide her with some background on the property and asked: “…if there were any complaints or Anti-Social Behaviour on the system? Ms. James said: “There is nothing that I can see on the system.” ... However, Ms J, who is black, faced racist abuse and threats from the upstairs neighbours from the start of the tenancy ... It transpired that L&Q did indeed have information about ASB relating to the flat on their system. A previous tenant of the flat (not the one exchanging), a black man with learning difficulties, had also suffered racist abuse. ... Total damages of £31,000. (Nearly Legal: Housing Law News and Comment)
https://nearlylegal.co.uk/2020/12/the-things-you-never-told-me/?…
# Legal significance International, Rent, Landlords and agents, Neighbours.Why Landlords Target Mothers for Eviction
Bryce Covert (No paywall)Mothers are being evicted far more frequently than other Americans. This is the hidden story of America's looming housing crisis. (The New Republic) ... [Patricia] Mendoza is one of the 10 million Americans currently at risk of eviction. More often than not, they are mothers. Having children is the single greatest predictor of whether someone will face eviction. It can be difficult to make rent and support a family, especially for women of color, who on average are paid less than white women, and single mothers living on one paycheck.
https://newrepublic.com/article/161578/landlords-target-mothers-…
# Hot topic International, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Women.Shelter NSW March 2021 e-Bulletin
(No paywall)During March, we have stretched ourselves across the micro and macro of the housing system – from thinking about social housing as critical, national infrastructure; and the plans for the future Western Sydney Airport; right through to supporting residents, tenants and allies in communities like Glebe. Of course our concern for tenants in the private rental markets continues to rise. The next few weeks will see the end of Commonwealth Covid19 income support and we fear, a great risk of increased evictions and homelessness.
https://mailchi.mp/shelternsw/shelter-nsw-march-2021-ebulletin?e…
# Must read NSW, Campaigns and law reform.Developers rush to beat the clock on affordable housing rule changes
Michael Koziol The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Developers are racing to beat new planning regulations designed to boost the supply of affordable housing which they warn will make it unfeasible for them to build low-cost accommodation. Advocates for affordable housing say the existing laws around boarding houses have allowed developers to reap government incentives for constructing micro-apartments that are too expensive for low-income earners. ... Shelter NSW policy director Ryan Harris supported the government’s reforms, saying it was a good outcome if developers were no longer offered incentives to build micro apartments they leased for $400 a week.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/developers-rush-to-beat-the-…
# NSW, Affordable housing, Housing market.‘All of this is mine’: In Mississippi, landlords legally snatch all belongings from tenants during an eviction
Anna Wolfe (No paywall)Mississippi’s Landlord-Tenant Act, amended in 2018 and 2019, provides that as soon as a judge grants an eviction in court, the landlord may immediately assume ownership of all the tenant’s belongings located on the property, even a trailer home. An eviction is almost always ordered automatically if the tenant is even one day behind on rent and there is no guarantee of a grace period that would give them the time to move. These are the harshest eviction statutes in the nation. [Read on] (Mississippi Today)
https://mississippitoday.org/2021/03/17/all-of-this-is-mine-in-m…
# International, Eviction, Rent, Goods left behind, Homelessness, Landlords and agents.Mr McCormack's 'move to more' campaign to get migration to regions might add to the regional housing crisis
Liam Cormican (No paywall)The federal government's $4.6 million campaign to get more people to live in the regions may add to Nowra's social housing crisis. The social housing waiting list in Nowra is five to 10 years for most property types with around 700 households on the list. Gilmore MP Fiona Phillips said the state of the rental and affordable housing problem was "dire". "We have the lowest rental availability in NSW," she said. (South Coast Register)
https://www.southcoastregister.com.au/story/7171672/the-move-to-…
# Hot topic, TUNSW in the media NSW, Public and community housing, Federal Government, Regional NSW.‘How am I going to pay this?’ Wave of evictions coming as moratorium ends
Clay Lucas The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)From Victoria ... But with the moratorium on evictions ending next Sunday, the 45-year-old is fairly certain her time in her Abbotsford home will soon be up. “I have no idea what I will do if I can’t find a job in the next few weeks,” says Ms Mansor, whose JobSeeker payments will fall to $616 a fortnight, as the supplement added by the Morrison government also finishes. ... Rental groups expect a surge of evictions the moment the moratorium ends, and federal unemployment support schemes such as JobKeeper wind up, also on March 28.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/victoria/how-am-i-going-to-pay-t…
# Hot topic Australia, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19.