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
Social landlords accused of inaction on racial harassment
Dominic Brady Inside Housing (Paywall)More must be done to stamp out racial harassment in social housing, former sector leaders have said. In an open letter to the National Housing Federation (NHF), former housing association chief executives and directors of housing called on the trade body to initiate a “rapid review of the advice, practice and governance of racial harassment in social housing”.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/social-landlords-accus…
# International, Discrimination, Public and community housing.Using super for homes will mean ‘bigger mortgages’, Labor says
Shane Wright and Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Allowing young people to use their superannuation to buy into the property market would drive up house prices and leave them with larger mortgages, Labor is warning as it encourages the Morrison government to support NSW’s move to axe stamp duty to make homes more affordable.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/using-super-for-homes-wi…
# Australia, Federal Government, Home ownership, Housing market, State Government, Tax.A regenerative housing estate at Gisborne that’s attracted a lot of savvy people and community buy in
Poppy Johnson The Fifth Estate (No paywall)Glen Junor in Gisborne is liveable, carbon positive and good for your hip pocket, with half the land to remain open for people and nature to share. Modelled on Serenbe in the US ...
https://www.thefifthestate.com.au/innovation/residential-2/a-reg…
# Australia, Utilities electricity water gas, Planning and development.Texas homeless face limited options for food and warmth amid winter storm
Erum Salam (No paywall)As Texas remains in the grip of an arctic blast that has left millions of people without power for several days advocates are warning of a growing crisis for the homeless in the state. The homeless and the elderly are always the most vulnerable populations in a natural disaster, and many in Texas are facing limited options for food or warmth as the state struggles to deal with the freezing temperatures and deep snow.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/16/texas-storm-snow…
# International, Homelessness.People with dementia are twice as likely to get COVID, US study finds
Pam Belluck The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)From New York ... People with dementia had significantly greater risk of contracting the coronavirus, and they were much more likely to be hospitalised and die from it, than people without dementia, a new study of millions of medical records in the United States has found. Their risk could not be entirely explained by characteristics common to people with dementia that are known risk factors for COVID-19: old age, living in a nursing home and having conditions like obesity, asthma, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/people-with-dementia-…
# International, Coronavirus COVID-19, Older people.Tent city ‘anarchists’ should pay Perth hotel’s homeless bill: McGowan
Marta Pascual Juanola The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)West Australian Premier Mark McGowan is adamant the government will not foot the bill for rough sleepers staying at an inner-city hotel, saying the “anarchists” and “activists” who booked the rooms should pay. The comments come after the owners of Perth City Apartments said they would kick out about 30 homeless people staying at the hotel on Wednesday morning, after the bill for room costs reached more than $20,000.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/western-australia/tent-city-anar…
# Australia, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.Coalition MPs back super-for-housing push as RBA fears price rises
Shane Wright The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Coalition MPs have pledged their support for a backbench push for the Morrison government to give Australians early access to their superannuation savings to buy their first home, as the Reserve Bank reveals fears about rising house prices.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/rba-shows-concern-about-…
# Australia, Federal Government, Home ownership, Housing market.Bailiff eviction ban extended to end of March
Dominic Brady Inside Housing (Paywall)Renters have been given a further six weeks of protection from bailiff-enforced evictions in England, the government has announced.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/bailiff-eviction-ban-e…
# International, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19.