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
Deaths among Rome's rough sleepers surge as shelters turn many away due to Covid
Angela Giuffrida The Guardian (No paywall)From Italy ... More people are sleeping on the streets in Rome after being turned away from shelters due to coronavirus restrictions, while the number of homeless people dying from the cold has surged this winter. There are about 8,000 homeless people in the Italian capital, of whom 3,000 have no shelter for the night, according to figures provided by the Catholic charity Community of Sant’Egidio.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/01/rome-covid-rough-s…
# International, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.Emergency preparedness handbook for people living in social housing
Inner Sydney Voice (No paywall)Knowing what emergencies could impact on you, planning what you will do, getting your home ready, being aware that something might happen, and looking out for each other are all important things to consider before an emergency happens. Read on ...
https://issuu.com/comms-innersydneyvoice.org/docs/handbook_a4_20…
# NSW, Public and community housing.NYC Apartment Landlords Getting Burned in Gentrification Crash
Prashant Gopal, John Gittelsohn and Oshrat Carmiel (No paywall)New York’s apartment investors are suddenly waist-deep in distress. By December, they were behind on $395 million of debt backed by mortgage bonds, almost 150 times the level a year earlier, according to Trepp data on commercial mortgage-backed securities. Tenants in rent-stabilized units owe at least $1 billion in rent and wealthier ones are fleeing the city, leaving behind vacancies and pushing newly-built luxury towers into foreclosure. For years, as crime dwindled and rent climbed in New York, investors gobbled up apartment buildings. But with the city’s economy and culture crushed by Covid-19, mounting job losses have derailed the gentrification boom and put financial pressure on landlords. Read on ... (yahoo!finance)
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nyc-apartment-landlords-getting-b…
# International, Housing market, Landlords and agents.‘Sickening to watch’: Scale of acquisitions for airport line upsets landowners
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Small landowners near the new airport in western Sydney who will be forced to sell their homes to make way for an $11 billion rail line say the state government has failed to justify the scale of compulsory acquisitions planned for the construction of a train station.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/sickening-to-watch-scale-of-…
# NSW, Eviction, Home ownership, Planning and development.‘A seller’s market’: House values hit record high after strong January
Shane Wright The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)House values have climbed to their highest level on record with every capital city in the country experiencing an increase through the first month of the year. CoreLogic on Monday reported that house values lifted by 0.9 per cent through January, eclipsing its previous high recorded in September 2017. The index is now 1 per cent higher than its pre-coronavirus level. ... Dwelling values across Sydney increased by 0.4 per cent, driven by a 0.7 per cent increase in house values. Unit values actually edged down by 0.1 per cent.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/a-seller-s-market-house-…
# Australia, Housing market.RBA boss Philip Lowe says household spending holds the key to post-COVID economic recovery
Michael Janda ABC (No paywall)[The RBA governor] ... observed that the past year's run up to record levels should further encourage homeowners to open their wallets ... Higher housing prices can also encourage additional residential construction. That's assuming things don't get out of hand.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-03/rba-governor-philip-lowe-…
# Australia, Housing market.Historic 'Oaklands' home in Warriewood at risk of demolition after vandals move in
Paige Cockburn ABC (No paywall)A historic house in Sydney's north that was supposed to be protected by developers could now be demolished, after being targeted by vandals and squatters.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-03/sydney-historic-house-may…
# NSW, Heritage listings.‘It’s a seller’s market’: Australian house prices push into record territory in January
Matt Johnson The New Daily (No paywall)Australians’ post-lockdown housing obsession appears to show no signs of slowing, with house prices pushing past 2017’s peak to hit a new record high in January. CoreLogic figures revealed national property prices are now 1 per cent above the average value before the pandemic hit, and 0.7 per cent above the previous record set in September 2017.
The biggest price rises across major cities were seen in smaller capitals including Darwin (2.3 per cent), Hobart and Perth (1.6 per cent), and Canberra (1.2 per cent). Sydney and Melbourne prices edged up 0.4 per cent through the month.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/property/2021/02/01/australia…
# Australia, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.