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
How much does it cost to rent on the Gold or Sunshine Coast? More than Sydney, new data reveals
Sarah Webb Domain (No paywall)The tsunami-sized sea-change trend is sparking a rental crisis across two of Queensland’s top coastal cities, with weekly rents reaching record heights that rival parts of inner-city Sydney and Canberra. Some locals have been forced to squat or live in their cars.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/how-much-does-it-cost-to-rent-on-…
# Australia, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness, Housing market.WestConnex substrata acquisition cheats residents out of receiving fair compensation
Kate Rafferty (No paywall)Permanent acquisition of underground land due to WestConnex construction has left property owners in the Inner West battling the government for compensation. (Inner West Independent)
https://cityhubsydney.com.au/2021/04/westconnex-substrata-acquis…
# NSW, Home ownership, Planning and development, State Government.'Death by 1,000 cuts': Environmental advocate calls for overhaul of Darwin's planning
Nicholas Hynes ABC (No paywall)On the northern edge of Darwin there is a line where the suburbs stop and nature begins. But the border between the tightly -packed houses of Muirhead and the coastal bushland of Lee Point will be blurred next month, as land sales begin on a major development which will eventually welcome 3,000 residents and a new tourist precinct. ... But there are growing concerns about the potential impacts on Darwin's coastal waterways. ... Environmental advocates say the proposed subdivisions could destroy key habitats and impede natural filtration and runoff of the waterways.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-26/land-demand-buoys-darwin-…
# Australia, Housing market, Planning and development.Petrol, home building prices to lift CPI
Colin Brinsden (No paywall)Higher petrol prices, the rising cost of home building and an increase in rents are expected to be among key drivers in a solid rise in the consumer price index for the March quarter. (Microsoft News)
https://www.msn.com/en-au/money/news/petrol-home-building-prices…
# Australia, Rent, Home ownership, Housing market.Record price gaps between house and unit prices are driving buyers towards the apartment life
Sue Williams Domain (No paywall)With the median unit price now 66 per cent lower than the median house price – the biggest difference since Domain figures began – many more house-hunters are considering apartment life.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/record-pricve-gaps-between-houses…
# NSW, Strata, Housing market.Rising house prices could derail post-COVID economic recovery
Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Home prices in Sydney and Melbourne are continuing towards double-digit price rises this year, with huge jumps over the first quarter, and for some buyers this will mean a commensurate increase in the mortgages they need to service to put a roof over their heads. It could also mean more borrowers choosing to take on more debt as property investors. ... one of the concerns that should be front of mind is the effect on spending.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/rising-house-prices-coul…
# Australia, Housing market.Australian Residential Tenancies Law in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Considerations of Housing and Property Rights
Chris Martin (No paywall)In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Australian states and territories implemented eviction moratoriums and measures to vary rent obligations – a remarkable response for jurisdictions that have, for decades, regulated residential landlord-tenant relations on a model of mild consumer protection, market rents and ready termination. This article examines the COVID-19 emergency measures and their implications for tenants’ housing rights, and landlords’ property rights. After reviewing the Australian rental housing system’s structure and legislative framework, the article examines in detail the COVID-19 emergency measures regarding evictions and rents in each state and territory. These vary in form and content, mostly on a pattern of additional protection from eviction for a core ‘hardship’ group, and variation of rents by individual negotiation. The article considers problems in the emergency measures, and points on which enduring reforms may be built, as well as critically appraising the argument that property rights protections limit the scope for reform.
http://www.unswlawjournal.unsw.edu.au/article/australian-residen…
# Must read, Legal significance Australia, Eviction, Rent, Tribunal NCAT, Coronavirus COVID-19, State Government.What the comments section can tell you about rental power dynamics
Janine Starks (No paywall)Tenants in rental properties across New Zealand have had their fears stoked by newspaper, radio and television commentaries in recent weeks. Landlords and their array of property lobbyists would have us believe rents need to rise dramatically on the back of tax changes which are being phased in over four years (mortgage interest won’t be tax-deductible by 2025). The whole fiasco has been quite an eye-opener in terms of the power play between landlords and tenants. (Stuff)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300277684/what…
# International, Rent, Housing market.